Wed, Mar 13
... Waiting in line for the next cheap thrill
Sometimes I forget that life is real. We live in such a society where we detach ourselves from real life that when it comes to real life, we don't know what to believe and what not to. For instance, amusement parks. The thrill is all imaginary. You strap yourself into a ride that has been tested for safety standards over and over again, by someone trained to run it (okay, maybe
that's a little bit of an overstatement--I did work at an amusement park for a summer!), with warnings against every condition you could possibly have that would make it unsafe, and it's timed so you're not on too long. And we feel like we're taking risks. What's the worst that's going to happen? In most cases, only that you'll get a bit motion sick and regurgitate your lunch.
And so, in life, we forget that it's real. We think it's all just some big ride, designed to give a thrill and then we get off, safe and sound. Unfortunately, what they forget to tell us is that it's not like that.
I keep forgetting that, though. I keep thinking that what I do won't affect things. I keep forgetting that everything I do has an impact; that there is an eternal perspective and impact to it all. That the people I give my heart to now will affect the way my marriage goes 25 years from now, or how I'll raise my kids. That when I teach Sunday School, I'm not just passing time; I'm touching lives. That when I screw up, I'm not just making things more difficult for a few days, but I'm affecting something--however small--for a long time, if not forever. You know, chain reactions.
But I keep forgetting that. I keep thinking this is all virtual reality. I can get off the ride at the end and be none the worse for wear, except maybe a little bit of queasiness. I'm strapped in nice and tight with my safety belt, inspections, safety standards, trained operators, and timed ride, and I'm not going to get hurt in the process.
Until I get off, and I'm not just queasy, but I wonder where things went wrong, and where I thought that the roller coaster would be so much fun. But the ride's over, and there's nothing left to do about it, except put it out of my mind, and go get on the next ride. The next cheap thrill. The next one will just be virtual, right? One of these days, it'll turn up safe.
infinite || abyss
posted at 1:48 p.m.
