My Role Model

I don't think that I actually have a particular role model because I don't fully imitate or grasp other people way of life because I have some principles in my life to achieve my virtue- and yes my principles are changing over time by the way my perspective to see the life, but according to Oxford Dictionary, a role model is "a person looked to by others as an example to be imitated".  So it means I have a lot of role models that seems to have the same virtue like me, for example, Socrates, Diogenes of Sinope (Diogenes was a common name on 300BC), Adriano Qalbi, my dad, and the list goes on. 

     Socrates is one of my role models because of his honesty to himself that he was accepting the fact that he didn't know anything. He was aware whenever he tried to understand something in particular, it would only lead to another question that he wouldn't understand yet. Even though this thing is applied to all people even in this day, but most of the people don't realize they actually not understand anything, moreover, they tend to be pretentious like Mr that-know-anything. Not only that, he also doesn't care if he threatened by other people because of the truth that he said (This is how he die. I know it kinda ironic). For him, the truth must be spoken and that's why I respect him.

     The second one is Diogenes. In the time he lived, people would tend to mock him and calling him stray-dog not because his school-of-thought was cynicism and cynic meant dog-like in Greek but because he'd look and act like an INSANE person... like literally. He'd yell out at people who were just minding their own business in the marketplace... and there were some stories tell about him carrying around a lantern in the daytime, shining at the people faces and saying, he is looking for an honest man. He would bark at people. He would lay around in public completely nude. But, my favorite story is when Alexander the Great wanted to meet him when he came to the town then when Alexander walking up to him and see Diogenes on the ground... when Alexander introducing himself and he said, "Is there anything that I can do for you?"... and Diogenes goes, "Yeah! Move a couple step to the left. You blocking my sunlight.". Maybe some people would think, "What a Jerk." or something, but for me, he was the person that really reached the ataraxia. His lifestyle was a representation of Cynic philosophy (Although this was a very extreme one). Cynicism was about achieving a tranquil state of mind. His approach to this tranquility is to ignore unfair rules, unrealistic desire, and other external restrictions. I know that I can't do this kind of ethics in the modern day like this, but at least I can apply some of his school-of-thought in my daily life.

     Then it comes to Adriano Qalbi. He is a podcaster, a stand-up comedian and a public figure (or isn't? He doesn't that fame). He is an unorthodox person in a way he "sell himself" as a person. He is a-least-version-of-Diogenes. He has some principle that he held firmly like privacy, for instance, even though he lives at this modern day when the netizens in social media shouting up their thought like there are no consequences. There are actually a lot of things that he said in his podcast that enlight me or at least give me another perspective to go through life.

     And the last person that I will write is my dad (It would be last as long as the Harry Potter novel or even more If I wrote all of them ). He had a rough life when he was a child, yet he struggled through life and finally made it. The fact that he could pass his rough life when he was a child not only by himself but also by the favor of countless people, it made him values other people help really much. I always told to return the favor to anyone that giving me a favor regardless how big is the favor that person gives. He also told me to do anything that you can do by yourself. He said, "If you could do it by yourself, just do it!". That what makes me an independent person. Maybe he is the biggest role model in my life... My intuition said so. I tried to dig the lesson that he gave me and made me who I am until this day, but I can't put it into the word. He told me countless of stories that I turned into my principles. Although I think I'm more of a liberal person not like my dad that more conservative person, but still I really thank him to make me who I am.