Feeding My Ignorance

As we progress through life there is - at least for me - an increasing realisation that there are things that we do - that we enjoy doing - that are seemingly unproductive, unnecessary or just a "waste of time". Yet we persist in doing them. For some people these can be harmful - to themselves or others - for others they are entirely benign - and yet the question remains - WHY?

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Why do we read a book? Why do we watch TV programs? Why do we listen to music? Why do we play computer games? Why do we create fancy meals? Why do we .... - OK - you get the point!

For all of these questions there are a number of answers that are applicable. Some of those answers are "good ones" in that they surface a positive and practical reason for doing those things. However, I do not believe that the "good" answers are applicable to all cases. Taking just the first question - some books we read for educational purposes - we are becoming more "learned". Surely a good reason to read a book - but - that does not apply to ALL books (or does it?) and - perhaps more fundamentally - it leads to another question of why are we learning - specifically about that subject?

The truth is that much of our life activities are "questionable" when viewed through certain lenses. What is "worthwhile" for one person can be regarded as a "waste of time" by another.

In our work life we see different characteristics being exhibited - some people work "flat out" all the time, rarely coming up for air, "nose to the grindstone" for the full working day and sometimes much longer. At the other end of the scale we have those who turn up late and leave early - take more than the "norm" out of their day for coffee breaks, lunch and anything else that shortens the working day. Which one of these two extremes is more "effective" - that is much less easy to determine than the "typical" manager would have it. The first person may still fail to complete all of their tasks on time - whilst the second may do all that is asked of them and still come up with innovations that make a big difference.

It is easy to think that if they actually turned up on time and, maybe, did the odd extra hour here and there then they would do so much more - but it may be that would have quite the opposite effect. Conversely, if we could drag the first person away from his desk for a long break at lunchtime, perhaps he would return in the afternoon much more "refreshed" and able to contribute in a much more productive way.

This doesn't give any extra "meaning" to the many "time-wasting" activities that I have asked the question "why" about at the start of this blog. What it does do is show that the benefits are - perhaps - not a result of doing these things - but a result of not doing something else!! These "breaks" in the sort of activities where everything must have a purpose actually give us a chance to breathe - to think - or perhaps to not think for a while.

I think that the answer to the "why do we do these things" question is actually quite complex - and more - it isn't always the same answer.

Take the TV watching - this, like reading books, may be educational - although you certainly cannot claim that ALL TV is educational. It can also be escapist - a break from something else. It can also be a way of simply changing our emotions. Personally I tend to use music as the tool to do this - but you can imagine that there are TV programmes that can affect how you feel - both up and down!!

We are each different and what affects me will not necessarily affect someone else (this, and associated insights, is very important to remember - it is too easy to judge everyone else by your own standards).

For me - both watching TV and reading books are ways of viewing different worlds from the one that I find myself in. (note that here I am talking about media that is 'fictional entertainment' primarily - although some 'reality' TV might also qualify - I am excluding anything that I am reading or watching specifically for an educational purpose) Many of my favourite books "create" a world - whether it be a specific location/time on the world we are in or - in the case of some science fiction/fantasy - imagine a very different sort of world - its no surprise that Lord Of The Rings, Dune, Discworld, the Foundation series and Stephen Donaldson's "Land" all feature in my "glad to have read" list. I have a tendency to read "series" - currently I am in Rebus' world - previously I have ventured into that of Uhtred, Cadfael, George Smiley and Jack Ryan (amongst others).

The same goes for my TV viewing - I have ridden with the Musketeers, time travelled with Dr Who, endured several tense days with Jack Bauer and sampled the atmosphere at Chicago Hope. Currently there is Elementary, House MD, Homeland, Person of Interest and the surreal world of Fargo.

In all of these the development of the characters fascinates me - the format of the typical series dictates that each episode is a complete story - however, systems thinker that I am (!!!), the underlying developments that span weeks or years are almost always more interesting. Having said that - the episodic stories in many cases contribute significantly to the changes that occur in the characters.

Just last evening I had the experience of a TV programme that "spoke" to me - I found the whole episode harrowing (I'll not include spoilers - won't even say what programme it was!!) as the characters struggled with the situations that they found themselves in. Yes - it was fiction - but that did not stop it becoming very "real". For several of the characters it was an occasion when they really were a bit like fish out of water - dealing with circumstances that were not in their comfort zone - not by a long way.

In the context of this blog and the way in which the world "looks different" through different eyes there was one particularly relevant set of exchanges as one of the characters asked the others, in turn, advice about a situation that - as far as this person was concerned - had spiralled way past the point that they were comfortable with.

The "advice" that was received covered a full spectrum of the possibilities - do "X"; don't do "X; do "Y"; don't do "Y"; culminating in the advice from the person who couldn't think of anything - "ignore it". After receiving all this "wisdom" was the character any better placed - perhaps the most positive thing was that at least it was clear that there was no right answer - and no wrong answer. Not sure how helpful that piece of knowledge is.

In summing things up the following philosophy was espoused:

Life is a series of rooms and what and who is in the room with you defines how your life proceeds. We do not necessarily choose the room or the companions - but today I am in THIS room with YOU and that will define my life.

This is (sort of) an inside out view of the Red Thread idea that I have addressed a number of times inasmuch as you can view the Red Thread as the mechanism by which two people have arrived in the same 'room' at the same time. Its not so much of their choosing as of their destiny - the thread has been pulled tight (by whomever or whatever) at just that moment.

There were a number of other "connections" that I made with this particular episode - may return to that in a future post - this one is long enough.