The Mistaken Path

the mistaken path:

"any regrets?"

"yeah, i'm not someone who can claim they have no regrets. the problem with life and choices is that when we set off on a new path, so to speak, we often don't know where it leads. it's like we have a map with parts missing. and the problem is that even if we're told what could happen, we don't really believe it, not without first hand personal experience, for example, gambling. it is a mathematical truth that inevitably a regular gambler will hit a huge losing streak at some time. how does he or she deal with it? the worst kind of gamblers are those who cannot accept losses, who may start off little but the bets get bigger and bigger until they are broke, or worse, heavily in debt with no more credit. and it's all a blur. it starts off with a tiny bet maybe, but hours later, down thousands. it's like once you start on the path, there's less resistance to go further and conversely, it's harder to get back, to stop."

"so don't make the first step onto that path?"

"right. once you start, you keep going. it's like now my map of life is covered with "danger" warning signs for several paths where i fear to tread again."

"well, maybe it's best to make all your mistakes early in life?"

"yeah, so there's time to recover. but the fear is, what if you couldn't recover from some mistakes?"

"it's all a learning experience. you do get better at identifying potential hazards."

"hopefully, where your fear becomes entirely rational, correct fear, i guess."

CLEARCHARGE

Between Fearless Optimism and Fearful Pessimism

between fearless optimism and fearful pessimism:

it all starts with a wish, a hope. we are happy, we think we can win at something, we can succeed, make progress. there is little or no fear, how can there be? we know nothing of the bad possibilities of the future. we are innocent. but those at the other extreme arrived by losing time and again, for they feel only fear and a conviction, deeply ingrained, that they just cannot win.

examining the path of the doomed gamblers of earth, where the odds are never in their favour, provides a useful lesson to us all. how does it all start, the want to gamble? there is the simple glamour of it all to begin with, the urge to prove to yourself that you are indeed a lucky guy or girl, that life can be exciting and easy, and, of course, everyone needs money. perhaps in the beginning, it is likely they won a little, or even a lot, which built a mindset, so set their minds to believe that they were a winner, and this mental setting was hard to shake off. beginner's luck became a curse. when eventually they lost heavily, they could not accept it, and gambled and lost even more, to oblivion.

i would say rarely does reality meet preconception for most. it always turns out slightly differently to what you thought. some you win, some you lose, sometimes something completely unexpected happens. in the end, it is about considering the risk involved in any venture. some risks are not acceptable. the only problem is, experience and mistakes and some misfortune are almost always required beforehand to accurately assess risk in life.

CLEARCHARGE

The Nervous Animal

the nervous animal:

such is the nature of the human being, an animal born with fear, nervous from the very start. fear of what? it is said some of our fears are irrational but could we ever be completely rationally afraid? perhaps it is just not possible.

we have several words that imply horrible, dreadful things but, if we are lucky, and nothing truly bad has ever happened to us, can we really think about these things with any clarity of thought? we have only a hint of what they entail. this is to argue the case that only someone who has actually done or really experienced something can truly think about it. the rest of us live in a dimmed awareness of such things.

but fear remains, it is connected to our thought, it swells when we consider bad possibilities, when we worry about our future, it can lead to irrational panic attacks when the impossible horror seems either totally possible or real already.

a girl walking in the forest alone, she keeps looking behind her, it just goes to show state of mind. perhaps she is scared of getting lost and looking back to get her bearings straight, perhaps she is scared someone is following her and she is all on her own. indeed, a lot of nerves are about travel and other people. given that it is a universal truth we are socially anxious animals, easing others' nervousness is a skill.

there is in human nature an urge to explore and to create. this is in itself a dangerous thing, not everywhere or everything is safe. once we have made mistakes, we are nervous whenever it seems they might happen again. could we ever be so aware of danger that we can avoid the whole learning by making a mistake thing?

CLEARCHARGE