Experimenting is fun.
The first conscious social experiment I remember trying out was in Gr. 8, when I decided to give up on trying to be cool and just hang out with the totally uncool kids - the people who accepted me as I was. That was the best social decision I ever made in my life. I was miserable prior to that decision and incandescently happy for the rest of the school year after I made the switch. It changed the way I would try to make friends forever. It also saved me from being an empty shell of a person for who knows how long. God (the source of the idea) was good.
The next experiment was about Gr. 11, when a friend and I wondered what would happen if we said "hello (insert name here)" to everyone we passed by at school that we knew the name of - the popular kids, the random kids, the kids in our class... everyone. I think the goal there was to attempt to get over our shyness. I think the experiment lasted about a week, because actually carrying out something like that was embarassing. Its safe to say that we failed royally. Oh well. I still like that idea though. After all, who doesn't like to be acknowledged?
This year I tried veganism... and lasted from September until Christmas. I just could not stand the temptation of being home and surrounded by loads and loads of chocolate. So I gave in and have been an "easy going" vegetarian ever since. What I mean by that is that now, if its far more convenient to eat meat, like at someone else's house for dinner, than I'll just suck it up and eat it.
I like this way of life because its more environmentally friendly, not to mention cheaper. I'm also far more aware of what I put in my body and what nutrients I need daily and weekly than I was before because of my vegan/vegetarian experiment. Also, as prideful as it sounds (and is), it helps me identify myself as a socially and environmentally conscious person, and so through the practice of abstaining from meat I am more conscious of how my actions as a consumer and global citizen affect the world around me.
Experimenting is fun. On this inside cover of this season's Geez, it says,
"What if we approached our troubled world less like earnest, hang-wringing, stern-talking, manifesto-brandishing world-changers...
...and more like slighly mad scientists?"
I love it. And it really convicted me. There are plenty of times I've talked with no action at all, plenty of things I support in theory but not in practice, and that's just silly.
Experimenting is fun.
I agree, experimenting is a lot of fun. Here's one for you, try not spending any money for a whole week. that's a fun one.
ReplyDeleteoh and "incandescently," good word! A+