A turning point in life?

This past week, I watched the movie "From Paris With Love" with my brother, and it was rather mediocre, as far as action movies go. The plot was predictable, the acting was uninspiring, and the dialogue left much to be desired. But I was still entertained, even if it was because of John Travolta's bold and brazen character. I don't think I've ever seen him in a role quite like that before, because his most memorable roles (to me, at least) were the dancing dude from Grease and the man-turned-woman on Hairspray, and so to watch him act all arrogant and unrefined was pretty amusing. 

Anyway, movie aside, the reason I mentioned the film was because there was a particular scene in which Jonathan Rhys Meyers’ girlfriend-turned-spy/suicidal-terrorist reveals her motives for joining the dark side. She tells him that all her life she never knew what her ultimate purpose was, and she never had some sort of final goal she wanted to achieve during her time on earth. But one day, she met this religious guy, and it was right at that moment that she knew. She understood her life’s calling. She claimed that was the turning point in her life where everything in the past didn’t matter, because she acknowledged, without a doubt, her purpose in life. And from then on she worked toward fulfilling the reason she was put on this earth.

That pretty much blew my mind. It was incredible. Intense and thought provoking. I might be the only person who appreciated that scene, but hey, it somewhat redeemed an otherwise C-grade movie for me.

It got me thinking: Is there such a thing as a turning point in life?  
A clearly defined moment where we turn our backs on our past and look forward to the future with a new and heightened sense of purpose? An instance of absolute significance that undermines everything we ever believed in and gives us a distinct zeal for life?

I have no idea. Maybe it’s one definite moment, maybe it’s a process, maybe it’s a lifelong journey toward discovering our life’s calling. But whatever it is, I sure would like to determine mine, because I’ve been feeling rather aimless lately, seeing as how I am a fresh graduate and my first 'job' right out of college is working in a pizza place in Perth, Australia, voted one of the most boring places on the face of the earth (by me). 

I just think there's got to be more to life than simply settling for whatever career you fall into. And yes, I think my generation and my parents' generation are worlds apart. Their mindset is to work to earn money and provide for their family -- very practical. Our mindset is to find a career we are passionate about and love doing, no matter how low the salary is or how bad the working conditions are -- very idealistic. But I don't mind being idealistic, because I'd rather live my life with purpose. I'd rather live in a cardboard box and do something I absolutely love everyday than settle into a cubicle and waste my life away earning big bucks but not enjoying any moment of it.


So yes, my goal right now is to find a goal for my life. Because you know what they say, a person without purpose is like a log of wood drifting into the vastness of the ocean until it is completely lost and overwhelmed by the water.

Okay, no one really says that. I just made it up. But you know what I mean. I just want to unearth my purpose in life, if that’s not too much to ask for.