Openness

I've come to the conclusion that people require, no, NEED problems in their lives. It occupies them. It challenges them. It reinforces their opinion of what a shitty world this is.

Hence, if you give someone openness and transparency, they react with suspicion. If not suspicion, then they'll take it for granted and walk all over you. If they don't walk all over you, then they'll still make things pretty hard. If you make things too easy for people, it gives them the luxury of emotional procrastination: let me take my time while I figure out everything that I'm feeling; you're not going anywhere, are you?

Problems bring out the best (and worst) in people. So making problems for someone is, in essence, challenging them. And people love a challenge. It intrigues them. It transfixes them. It allows you to have power over them as they struggle to adjust to the curveball you've hurled their way.

Love is power. It's the power of one person over another. The person whom you feel for the most also happens to be the person who can (and often does) hurt you the most. Bonds are formed through trials like this.

It's sad that things are this way. And I'm not absolving myself of contributing to this charade: I do the same thing.

I've always had a lot of faith in the power of thinking and feeling. But I also know that they're limited and that sometimes, the best course of action is just to do something and deal with the consequences that come with it. On-the-fly troubleshooting, that's the best way to live life. Plans change, dreams fade, resolutions waver. You can stop your car on the highway of life and imagine what the road ahead must be like or you can drive it and deal with what you find.

I'm starting my engine.