You earned my respect by being authentic and genuine. You showed me respect when we, on the surface, had nothing in common. You also affected me in a way that few students do. A. C. had a similar effect with me, but ofcourse, he came from a completely different direction that you. You gave more than I did, and I give quite a bit...so, strangely, I am grateful.
I am saying that everyone is geared for happiness. It is just that some of are more skeptical and others of us are so empathetic that we wear others' pain and fold in, in some way, their suffering into our own experience. I think the latter is you and I. I like to think that is quite a sophisticated way to be. It is a beautiful thing, in its intent. The problem are the side effects...the insomnia, the obsessions, the complusions, the manifestations on our eating habits, sleeping habits. It forces us to have conflicts that others don't seem to experience (at least when they do, the duration is shorter) with politics, sexuality, and religion (all of the things one is not supposed to talk about in social situations). Let's start calling them less-positive emotions rather than negative ones. The suffering is the thing that makes great people great. In A Separate Peace, when Gene tries to assert that WWII is real, Finny ignores him. In an attempt to shatter Finny's fantasy world, Gene asks why Finny is so much more special than everyone else and knows that the war is a fake. He responds bitterly, "Because I've suffered." The two do not forget this shared moment, since it reveals a darker side of Finny that Gene had not seen before. Suffering is proof that you get it. "Getting it" is a powerful thing. I hate to quote the movie Spider-man, but isn't it his uncle who says that with great power comes great responsibility. SO that is how one who gets it is capable of more. They understand more...they know more...they have this gift of empathy that requires them to experience things differently, and that is why he is capable of accomplishing more.
"Irrational" may erroneously have a negative connotation. I like irrational. If one is irrational it implies that he/she does not necessarily the consequences or that they accept those consequences. One of my favorite quotes has been credited to George Bernard Shaw. "The rational man looks into the world and sees it for what it is. He then conforms himself to it and makes the best of it. The irrational man looks into the world and sees what he wants. He then conforms the world to his vision. Thus all progress relies on the irrational man."
What you have to remember is that Krakauer is an excellent writer who writes for a general audience and consumer consumption. That brings with it certain implications. For example, movies for popular consumption intend to make you laugh or cry. That isn't necessarily a bad thing. I like crying at sad movies. I enjoy it even. It is sort of like an involuntary baptism. What embracing it requires is distance. Are you being had? With Krakauer, you are probably not. I think what he does in that book is try to show that those feelings that McCandless has are not unique. The desire to "truly" experience life is quite common, but most people get caught up with relationships and credit to act on those feelings. You may at another point in your life read that book differently. You may revisit it to see that Krakauer is actually quite critical of McCandless. I have that experience with several writers: L. Hughes, T. Capote, Dostoyevky...
One can do all of those things (appreciate the luxuries taken for granted, understand the importance of loved ones, become a better person, see more of the world) without putting one's self in harms way. I might even say that McCandless was being a little selfish (Maybe that is why he gave his money away). I haven't read Yankoski's book, but he seems to have a better handle on doing the transcendental thing...you know going out in to the woods to live life deliberately.
I have always considered going to Africa to experience something real. Maybe that is the thing you should do. Missionary work...peace corps...I don't know either. I think you owe it to yourself to be clear on what your true intentions are. Let me know what you think. Do you think I am missing something?
You have always been on a journey. You started out on a journey.
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