A Gentleman's Farewell

As my 20^th birthday looms ever closer, I become aware of a deep and insatiable desire. It is an urge so base and instinctual in its nature, that it stifles any protests and overcomes all barriers. It is the desperate longing for manhood, for maturity, for completion. I don’t mean a brief feeling of superiority that comes with an initial conquest. I mean something deeper. Something that can only be achieved through experience and adversity. I pine to put aside childish things and leave the safe, well tended path I’ve walked so far in my life. I burn to stray from the trail and burst through the underbrush of the world, forging a new path all my own. I long to meet obstacles and challenges on my own, and overcome them through nothing more than my own skill. I am no longer content with the safety and comfort of the known. I shun the careless bliss of boyhood and choose instead to embrace the rough and dangerous struggle of manhood.

But I have come to realize that it is foolishness to rush through the wilderness with your eyes on your feet trusting them to carry you where they will. We are shaped not by our experiences but by our decisions. It makes us who we are and allows the wise to see who we are as well. A few recent experiences have taught me that I must lift my eyes from the ground and guide my own path. That while terrain of destiny will determine whether I am to stand triumphant on mountain tops or crawl naked and cold through dark valleys, it is up to me to make sure I am prepared for either.

This will more than likely be the last entry to FTG.  Gentlemen, I have enjoyed your encouragement and take pride in the fact that I was able to entertain you. But, for a time at least, entertainment falls sharply in my list of priorities. I harbor hope that my path meets with yours in the wilderness. Keep your eyes on the horizon and live for the dawn.

Sincerely,

Andrew Fucking  Johnson