"Humans are obsessed with escapism" By Aditya Singh

 

If we revisit our childhood carefully, we notice something interesting. Many children maybe not all, but a large number dislike studying. They dislike going to school. Waking up early, doing homework, memorizing lessons, sitting in a classroom for hours none of it feels exciting to a child. What they truly love is playing, roaming with friends, running endlessly without worrying about time or consequences. Childhood joy comes from freedom, not responsibility.

As we grow older, things start to shift. Not because we suddenly develop a deep love for education, but because we begin to understand the system. To pass, we must study. To move to the next class, we must secure enough marks. To protect ourselves and our parents from judgment, we must perform well enough. So we study not out of passion, but out of survival. Achievement slowly becomes a mask that hides our escape from criticism.

This reveals a deeper truth about human behavior: we are obsessed with escapism. We avoid what we dislike, even when it is necessary for our life. We run towards what gives us comfort, even if it adds no socially acceptable value. When life becomes dull, repetitive, or emotionally draining, we search for ways to escape through books, music, travelling, movies, games, friendships, or anything that helps us forget our reality for a while.

However, there is a harsh reality buried inside this habit of escape. Only a few people succeed in building a life they do not want to escape from. And even they cannot escape forever. Sooner or later, responsibilities, relationships, finances, expectations, and the weight of daily routine catch up to everyone. No matter how far we run, reality walks right behind us and eventually stands at our door.

Most of us end up living with this contradiction: we spend the majority of our time doing things we do not enjoy, while dreaming of things we cannot live in permanently. Life becomes a constant balancing act between duty and desire between what we must do and what we wish to do. Yes, there will be moments when we feel alive: late-night conversations, laughter with friends, festivals, vacations, a good song, a peaceful evening. These moments matter, but they are temporary pauses, not permanent solutions.

So perhaps the goal is not to escape life, but to understand it. Music, art, books, travel, and friendships are not doors that remove us from our problems they are cushions that give us relief, strength, and comfort. The happiness we once felt as carefree children cannot return in the same form, and that is okay. Some parts of life must simply be accepted and carried. The more we run from reality, the more reality chases us. But when we stop running and start living with awareness, we discover that even inside an ordinary life, small pockets of joy can still make our existence meaningful.