I do a lot of unnecessary introspection and interpolation. And, sometimes, the by product is random nonsense and going from point A to point Z through skies and oceans, things which do not make sense if you do not live in my brain. Let me put it more concretely.
I am on an experience kick. Embracing uncertainty and uncomfortable situations for growth and to interact with life. Now, as part of that I realized we humans are extremely scared of the possibilities of limitlessness.
The brain does not have the capacity to imagine what it does not know. For example, I can not fathom for the life of me how to spend a day if I was Modi or Zuckerberg or anyone else. Because, I do not have the necessary resources to even begin comprehending the scale of their lives. And, to imagine reaching that state is in itself terrifying. Simply because that success is not imaginary, it is existing in the real world but my life and experiences are so vastly different from that end point, I can never think of reaching even midway to that journey.
Which brings me to the point – What makes anyone say they like something or they do not like something, especially when they have no experience with it. Will the said person try out everything and then decide whether they like the activity or not? But, then, one does not say Yes to everything. Some of the activities may be termed as a Maybe and some are straight out No.
The question is what makes them say Yes or No. Is it because they already know they do not want to try it out or just because it is unfamiliar and, therefore, uncomfortable.
Take hiking or trekking, for instance. I have never done it so I have no idea if I would like it or not. But, would I want to try it. The question is a bit intricate because if I consider the sole physical demands of the activity, I am not adventurous or outdoorsy and do not like insects or leeches clamping onto me. And, any changes in weather puts me off. But, I could definitely try out a beginner-friendly hike of a small enough duration before setting the Everest base camp as a goal.
Whereas, if you talk about Skydiving, that’s a straight out No. Because, I am scared of heights and I have no inclination to jump from a plane into nothingness when I can not jump from three stairs to the ground below.
So, there are levels of experiences and degree of discomfort we may be open to experience and the more we put ourselves into those situations,, our tolerance for handling a slightly more uncomfortable situation increases, thereby widening the range of activities we may indulge in.
Note to Self: Next time an opportunity comes, do not knock it down immediately. May be, it’s a chance to transform my horizons,.
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