Which of these is not like the other?
Surely, you’ve heard or said this expression before. Whether lightheartedly you’ve joked about it or sarcastically been the butt of a joke about it, no one would argue that the process of sorting & filtering information via dissimilarities is all too common. This sense-making behavior is quintessentially human!
But have you ever considered how biasing the chunking of information towards differences in lieu of sameness might be problematic?
It can be interesting to look back on any meaningful rite of passage you’ve acquired after enduring a long, exhausting journey to arrive there. If you were to compartmentalize your pre-rite of passage self from your post-rite of passage self, you’d be able to notice how the things your younger self saw, heard, felt, wanted, needed, etc. differed from what your current self now sees, hears, feels, wants and needs. You likely wouldn’t blame yourself for not knowing what you didn’t know earlier. Instead, you’d better understand how wisdom acquired without experience is similar to money inherited via the lottery; empty. Accordingly, you’d acknowledge that the things you did and believed pre-rite of passage were absolutely the best that you could do at the time.
All this being said – it’s far too easy not to give someone else pursuing a rite of passage the same compassion and understanding that you yourself were afforded by others, or by yourself, while in pursuit. Let’s call a spade a spade here and note just how ridiculous that is. As if there would be benefit to others enduring more suffering than we’ve endured? Rites of passage aside, have you ever labeled yourself as “crazy” or “weird” for believing/doing something that millions, let alone billions of others have also believed/done?
A consideration: if you find yourself to be someone often differentiating themselves from others, identifying as “the exception”, or believing to possess an exclusivity that presupposes a superiority, perhaps it’s time to try on a new lens.
Like widening the aperture of a camera, I dare you to deviate from portrait mode and take in a wider perspective. At the essence of being human, we’ve all got more similarities than differences when it comes to fundamental wants and needs.
Go on, keep being a killer. But be mindful: you owe it to yourself and the rest of the world to be a kind one.
11/30/20 WOD
DEUCE ATHLETICS GPP
[Meet at Anderson Park]
DEUCE BACKLOT GPP
[Meet at Pan Pacific Park]
DEUCE GARAGE GPP
3-3-3-3-3
Thruster
6-6-6-6
Front Rack Reverse Lunges
Then, every 4 min for 5 rounds, complete the following for time:
Run 200m
8 DB Clusters (50/35)