Art Beat: ‘You do what you gotta’ do’

I recently turned 30 years old. That’s a number many will scoff at, but for me, it means everything.

I’ve gotten far enough to know that nothing lasts forever and mortality is as real as the air we breathe.

People I know and care about are gone forever and others could be gone at moment’s notice. That’s how it is for all of us.

Whether you believe in higher power or not, it’s hard to deny that we truly have no control over the world around us. The only thing we can control is how we deal with whatever punches life throws at us.

I’ve been alive long enough to learn that life is precious and we are all better off if we can figure out ways to live a life that’s true to who we are.

In honor of that train of thought, here’s some quotes to further expand my point:

“If you’re gonna look at yourself, really look in the mirror, you gotta admit who you are. But not just to yourself, you gotta admit it to everybody else.”

— Frank Castle, from the Netflix adaptation of Marvel’s “The Punisher”

“Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do.”

— Steve Jobs

“Without leaps of imagination, or dreaming, we lose the excitement of possibilities. Dreaming, after all, is a form of planning.”

— Gloria Steinem

“All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them.”

— Walt Disney

“There is no passion to be found in playing small--in settling for a life that is less than you are capable of living.”

— Nelson Mandela

“I’d rather be a failure at something I love than a success at something I hate.”

— George Burns

“The only way out is to find something that you care about… You do what you gotta’ do.”

— Frank Castle, from the Netflix adaptation of Marvel’s “The Punisher”

Contact Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman reporter Jacob Mann at jacob.mann@frontiersman.com