There's a scene in the movie, Almost Famous, where someone, in 1975, is amazed that it only takes 17 minutes to fax a sheet of paper across the country. I remember the audience laughing hard. I think there was a recognition of how quickly we get used to things, and how soon they become normal to us.
When we see something for the first time, there's a dazzling newness. It's exciting. We want this thing because of how it makes us feel. The funny thing is, the feeling is short lived. What excites us one day, doesn't the next. We get conditioned to go after the new-rush feeling.
I saw some cell phone ads yesterday that said, "Faster Than Ever!", "Fast Just Got Faster!" "Insanely Fast!" "Really, really fast!" The crazy thing is, no matter how fast something is, we quickly get used to it, and don't notice it anymore. We find ourselves bored, wanting something even faster.
We're being taught that fast is important. It's an easy sell because life isn't fast. We have to stand in lines. We wait for a phone call or an email. We get stuck in traffic. We wait for someone who is late. The idea of being faster makes us feel powerful. It's like one of the cell phone ads that said, "Rule the Air!"
We end up not buying the products, but how we wish they would transform us.
What we end up feeling is frustrated because the thrill is short-lived and we're still the same person. With the added pressure of more stuff in our life. And with an increasing aching knowingness that living this way isn't serving us.
A satisfying transformation comes from within. It comes from seeing that nothing is going to fix us, because we're not broken. We are how we are. With all our peculiarities.
We're glorious odd-balls. I mean that endearingly. I love people when they are themselves. It's hard to feel connected to someone who is trying to be something other than they are. It's refreshing to meet someone who exudes, "This is me, take it or leave it."