I found myself in that old familiar situation, again. I was waiting outside the mall with my fell art aficionados waiting for the latest wave of Armani Exchange clothes imported from Europe. The legendary guitarist Jonathan Gallant heavily advocated this new style of clothing called “Flip†describing them as “the clothes every urban hipster should wear.†Being a mindless consumer, I waited with my close friend, Nikolai, for the mall to open.
9am finally came around, and I soon found myself decked out in Flip clothes. My fashion satisfaction only cost me $1900 this time. As always my mother assuaged this worthless spending saying “I should save up for college.†As usual, I shrugged off my mother’s advice and took my wheels out for a spin. I turned on the pinnacle of all punk rock in existence, Billy Talent, full blast and sped on to my girlfriend’s apartment, so she could see my newly acquired attire.
There’s something about Ben Kowalewicz’s voice, I don’t know if it’s the style of his singing or the lyrics he sings, but I find his music so endearing. Ben is my obvious idol, whom I listen to nearly every second of every day. That’s when I heard him for the millionth time vocalize the most important set of lyrics I’ve ever heard: “Throw all your luxuries aside, you cant take ‘em with ya when you die.†From this song brought on an epiphany, how I don’t need all of these aesthetic, material objects to claim my happiness. I realized how much of an arrogant, self-entitled, materialistic child I was. This wasn’t the first time Ben Kowalewicz has inspired drastic changes, but it was the most life changing. I’m not waiting in line with Nikolai this month for the next wave of Flip clothes, but instead I am focusing on what matters.
