outside in
August 8, 2014 § 6 Comments
Personalities flit through my days, larger than life, pressing against my attention and distracting me with the fullness of their presence. I watch them, enamored by their casual confidence and easy humor, innocent brazenness and conspiratorial certainty. They move within skins that cradle strength beneath emotions poorly hidden, tender in spirit and reckless with entitlement. Generous and eager, impatient and steadfast, they are bold in word and deed. I feel weightless in comparison; the whim of my thoughts and uncertainty of self an internal taunting. Old muscles and new thoughts dare me to step inside discomfort, moving outside the security of invisibility; inside the weight of self.
scribblechic 
hello! i am nandini! i am 13 years old and i write and paint. i’d love it if you’d visit my blog! creationsbynandini.wordpress.com
Thank you, Nandini, for inviting me to read your work.
Sounds to me like a call to antigragility (not the same as resilience; it’s better–you gain strength from adversity, not merely withstand it). Give it a listen 🙂
Maurice, I may live under a rock. How might I listen to this?
Sorry, it’s just me being a bit oblique as is often the case. This time I was being a bit more metaphorical. It seemed to me from this post that you were being challenged and my instincts tell me that you have much more to gain than to lose.
The notion of antifragility has been popularised by N N Taleb in a fairly recent book by that same name. If you are interested in learning more, here’s a decent introduction. http://www.economist.com/blogs/multimedia/2010/11/nassim_taleb_antifragility
The book is thoughtful but, frankly, written in a rather combative tone that often detracts from the central idea, which is too bad.
I may look up the title, but I appreciate the uncomplicated honesty of your counsel. Thank you for the gentle nudge and firm vote of confidence.