The Unnatural Acceleration: Deprecates Reality & Experience
Ever tried to get something earlier than it would have come naturally? I am sure everyone, including me fall into states where we fantacize having or experiencing a future state in the immediate now.
The more farther it is, more is the anticipation quotient attached, the more it seems exciting to pursue it as an unmet demand! Take for example, we are faced with choices often—moving to a bigger house, upgrading or getting that first car, taking that vacation that keeps appearing on our screens every now and then, enabling us to dive into luxurious or pleasurable experiences, and what not!
It is only on the way to pursue, that we resort to borrowing help from the system, the same system that is also built to control consumerism, promote advertisements, and ensure industries thrive. We tend to lose the temperament of rational thinking, and end up borrowing time, money, energy, focus in our present moment to convert that into forcing what otherwise hasn't naturally come to us in the now. Tinkering with the natural flow of things always puts our energies out of balance, that otherwise could have taken shape into realizing the same demand earlier- but only if we could avoid the unreasonable outreach in the first place.
The Marathon of Life
Think of it, you might be able to run at say a good steady 8 kmph for a Marathon, but instead you sprint mid way at 12 kmph by loading onto energy bars, some loud music on your ears, fancying about some personal record that you never even trained for. This will result in wear and tear of endurance levels, an unsteady heart rate, sudden aches, incorrect posture induced tears in ligament, and what not!
Even if you are able to make it to the finish line, ask yourself at what cost or risk—the real risk is you might never be able to build that endurance of a real runner, that is being pushed further into the future. It's not just this natural delay of an ideal able state- what you do is reduce the quality, the excitement, steady enjoyment, of experiencing a naturally fuelled, well practiced run. Pushing harder isn't bad, it's bad when we have not prepared harder, and hence not ready, naturally!
Come to think of it! What if this leads to not even finishing the marathon, a DNC status ie Did Not Complete!!, solely because you aren't focused at all on your way. Maybe you could have finished earlier, than sprinting and risking the pursuit.
STILL WHY?
Why lost time? Whatever is available as help or borrow invariably pushes the natural state of having the same thing further away into the reality.
Imagine the cycle of choice and consequence:
[Present Choice to Accelerate] → [Temporary Attainment] → [Hidden Costs Accumulate] → [Delayed True Attainment]Why is there a loss of natural flow? Wear and tear, results in delayed presence in the only thing that matters i.e. now. The wear and tear is a result of repent arising out of the realization- this wasn't so important given the cost. It also slows us down, creates doubts, and reduces clarity around what we really wish to continue doing for long term.
It eventually might kill a reasonable dream, by giving rise to self doubt!
The Space Between Desire and Fulfillment
There exists a sacred space between wanting something and receiving it—a space where preparation, appreciation, and personal growth occur. When we collapse this space artificially, we don't just receive the thing earlier; we receive it differently, in a form that lacks the foundation needed to fully embody it.
On the other hand, not trying to reach a state earlier, enhances the experience once we naturally reach there—worry free, relaxed, not an iota of doubt. This experience becomes a part of us, an identity since we took the route of delayed gratification, and prepared better for a long journey, full of pleasant milestones that come as surprises along the way.
The patient journey has a deeper significance, it's not about arriving to certain outcome, but transformation of the traveler—a dimension of experience utterly lost in artificial acceleration.
