Hello, I am Frederick, I am 21 years old and studying Computer Science and AI at Sussex University, although this blog will rarely touch that world. This year I will be writing a blog post every week. Today is Sun 4^th Jan 2026 and it is currently 9:49pm so I am off to an amazingly disciplined start… 

What is the thing you have always wished to do? The thing that conquers your mind when you’re bored. The fantasy you dream of during the monotonous moments in life. Well as you may have guessed my obsession for this year has been reading and writing. The issue with this is that not much writing has been done. Yet on I would dream. I would live inside the fantasy of a writer and philosopher whilst I continued not to act. This is something most people will be familiar with; I believe that it is a quick way to hate life, be frustrated with it and most importantly yourself. Whether or not I will continue to peruse writing after this year is to be decided, but regardless of that, I will know whether it’s a dream I wish to follow or time to find a new dream. The power in doing is you stop making excuses about life and start genuinely moving along your path.  Action in the wrong direction can shine a light along a new path. The cost of acting is nothing relative to the regret of not. 

I have been thoroughly enjoying philosophy and Buddhist ideologies at the moment, I think those who had a troubled childhood tend to end up in a place of self-reflection, philosophy being an expected destination along that journey. (I’m sure being a confused 21-year-old also plays its part). I have even started working with a philosophical counsellor and he told me that when reading, there are parts which stick out to you, which you find especially interesting and gripping. These are interesting for reasons which are independent to you and your life. There will always be something to find if you dive deeper with reflection and discussion. A key part of my blog will be taking quotes that stand out to me and analysing them. In doing so I hope to improve my writing while continuing my study of philosophy, myself and life.

Not many people will find their way to Beyond Being, but for those who do, I hope to provide some insight into your own life through thoughts from my own. If you resonate with me, I’m sure you will find value in the texts, movies and themes that will be discussed. Think of this as a weekly does of philosophy, which may be the start to a new idea, book to read or point of introspection.

The irony with starting this is that my whole life I have been a ‘maths person’ always thinking logically in a binary fashion. I found comfort in math’s structure of right or wrong, No middle ground.  However now I find myself on the opposite side of the stream. My younger self would have never believed me if I had told him this. 

A comforting thought just popped into my head of me starting my life and ending up in the wrong place but ever so slowly finding my way back home, alongside myself as a child before any of the worrying and stresses of life. Ironically ending up at the place I started. I’ll spend a long time looking for the ‘right’ way but in the end, it was there within me all along. 

I wish I could have spent longer on this first post, but alas here we are close to midnight and the end of week 1. When you go for a run, it may be tiring, it may be hard, but it is always, without fail, fulfilling. If I can live my life making the hard but meaningful choices over the easy worthless ones I believe I will end up where I want to be. My whole life doesn’t need to be planned out, just as long as I make sure what I do next counts. It may be hard to pick up the metaphorical pen and start writing but the sense of fulfilment I feel right now is a sign that I’m on my way forward.

See you next week 😀

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