Burn Out or Fade Away?
Neil Young may have posed it first, but it was Def Leppard’s “Rock of Ages,” that prompted me in my youth to ponder the question, “Is it better to burn out, or fade away?” For me at least, the question came with the insinuation that to burn out required taking risks, thereby sacrificing the longevity that’s more apropos of a life lived cautiously.
In my youth, my choice was to undoubtedly take risks and burn out. I couldn’t imagine the boredom of living life any other way but to extreme. Risky and short was far more enticing than cautious and long.
Nowadays, I interpret “burning out” to mean living life to its fullest, which doesn’t necessarily require taking risks. Like my teenage son says, “If you’re going to be stupid, at least be smart about it.” So, although I still choose to burn out, rather than fade away, I no longer believe it comes at a sacrifice to longevity.