The most pathetic bucket of adults are those that never really mentally move past high school or college. Who are either starstruck by themselves and their moment of glory on the field or in class or with a group of people, or who still long for acceptance and belonging because they never really achieved it to their satisfaction during those formative years.

These people get jobs and get married and have kids just like everyone else. But in their head, throughout each life phase, they are regularly replaying a highlight reel from 20 or 30 or 40 years ago. Back in the day.

Minutes and days and years wasted, focusing mental energy on a time that has passed when it could be spent living in the moment now. Making life awesome now. Focusing on love or children or family or job or friends or service. Or even success. Focusing on right now.

I guess no matter which bucket they fall into, the root of it is insecurity. And insecurity is just so ugly. And exhausting to be around.

You can’t live a life of happy days or with glory days if you’re stuck thinking about people and events from the old days, or if you’re stuck still chasing that feeling from those days, or if you’re stuck still chasing acceptance from the people of those days.

There’s only one way to get that glory feeling in the right now, and that’s doing something of purpose – out of your own head – in the right now.

“Well time slips away and leaves you with nothing, mister, but boring stories of glory days.” Bruce Springsteen