In one of those rare precious insights, on my first day of the France/Italy trip this summer I coined the following expression to guide myself from that point on. Note that this is the verbatim language that I came up with.
I will do anything as long as the opportunity is available, risk is mitigated, and circumstances allow.
I have found this statement to hold up since then but for better or worse it requires some explanation and qualification before it is ready for use in the wild.
- the opportunity is available
The first clause is the least defined on its own. I am defining
opportunity to refer to any action itself being possible, and the willingness of any people involved to participate or give permission. For example, if I wanted to drive to the library, I would ask a parent if I could use the car and I would have to explain where I am going and when I will be back. In other words,
opportunity refers to the
who, the
what, and the
how. This clause also blocks out things that I outright do not want to do (the statement's most inherent literal weakness) regardless of feasibility because I am not present in the
who. However, I designed this statement in such a way during the trip so I would have less excuse to shy away from trying new things in a foreign place.
Conversely, this component easily explains itself. I am not going to do anything if it presents considerable danger or possibility of loss unless any adverse factors have been adequately protected against. I have never in my life ridden a bicycle without a helmet, and I usually wear some form of visual protection as well, casually sunglasses, but in the future I might look into some proper eyewear. Likewise, I would not enter a vehicle jam-packed with teenagers. I would probably seek shelter. I do not have a deathwish.
This phrase answers for the
where and the
when. I project a feeling more of outside, unchangeable factors and conditions onto this requirement. In the bike riding example from from item #2, I won't go for the bike ride if it is raining or dark outside. If I don't have the time or a good location to take a nap--well, I'd probably take the nap anyway.
Paraphrased for clarity (and in an exclusive rather than inclusive manner), I will only do something if collectively everyone involved is able and agreeable, if safety is assured or precautions are taken, and if I have the resources and circumstances necessary.
I found this very intriguing. It's interesting how, regardless of outside beliefs that may be forced upon us, our personal "philosophies" remain our own. I can't say that I've had many official ones myself, but your breaking down of the anatomy of your expression was fascinating. It really goes along with what we've been talking about in class -- writing on a sentence-level, condensed bits of wisdom/aphorisms...
ReplyDeleteI like how you created it before venturing off into Europe. I've only ever traveled with my family, but if I ever had the opportunity to have more of a say in my traveling activities, I would want to be more adventurous and have a similar mantra.
I think this is extremely interesting! Maybe if I were in your spot, I might just say "screw it, let's do this", but my philosophy would still tell me "not to do anything stupid."
ReplyDeleteKudos to explaining your philosophy to everyone! Also I like the brief humor created when you tell us that you'd take a nap even if you didn't have the time.
I look forward to reading more posts!
Your explanation of your philosophy is very thorough. It's amazing that you manage to fit so much information and convey so many of your personal beliefs in one simple statement. I also admire how you set up your statement so that you wouldn't have an excuse to shy away from trying new things. People tend to search for reasons to avoid doing things they don't want to do. I'm glad you have the courage to break the trend!
ReplyDelete-Sherry
I'd point out that the idea that you want to do something is imbedded in the concept of "opportunity." It's not an opportunity (at least not for you) if it simply doesn't appeal to you.
ReplyDeleteBut what if you just happen to not want to do it? Does that fall under "circumstances allow"? What if someone suggests you go get them a candy bar when you want to take a nap?
ReplyDeleteI constructed the statement so that I would not get an easy out in a situation like this. In this example, it would require some more analysis.
DeleteIf the person asks politely and has a genuine reason why I should get them a candy bar instead of them getting if themself (or if I am just feeling generous), then I have no excuse for being lazy. On the other hand, if the person is rude, careless, or has not convinced me why they need me to get them a candy bar, then naptime ahoy.