Life appears the same with our habits & daily routines embracing us. Surrounded by problems, situations, and responsibilities which seem quite similar or repetitive.
We spend much of our lives between things that are the same or they are different. Our habits and routines/responsibilities fill much of our days with sameness.
The occasional new restaurant, party, or vacation gives us brief glimpses of different. Meeting someone who is not like us. Has different interests. Experiencing a cuisine we have never tasted before.
Many would argue that what I just described should be classified as new. But different, most times, is only compared to our sameness. To our likes and beliefs. All of which we hold tightly to us. Different is merely a classification that implies we are “just driving by” rather than exploring.
New only appears when we pay attention.
For something to be new, it must challenge what we believe or know. While it most likely will be different, it is our curiosity to explore it where new makes its impact.
Sometimes new confuses us. At times, while interesting, it may have little value at the moment. It’s our focus that brings new to life and challenges us. Finding nuance, detail, knowledge, and perspectives once foreign to us begins to expand our world.
Creatives understand the power of new. It’s the clay in their hands that gives birth to their creations. For the cook, it could very well be a neighbor’s dish that leads to experimentation in their own kitchen. Reading is a wonderful way to introduce new into our lives. For it is the intention we bring to wanting to read that immerses us into ideas, stories, and possibilities never once considered.
Conversation, where listening fills the words shared with new questions is another way to discover new. Once again, revealing stories and options never imagined.
All this adds up to the realization that to grow and develop we need to propel ourselves past our sameness and not be deceived by different. For different merely affirms the sameness we enjoy. Much like the atheist who needs God to describe his position, different needs our sameness to define itself.
We need to pay attention to different in an active way to reveal what is new and have this new challenge us. For new to be revealed we must be active in exploring it. Bringing with us an open mind to embrace possibilities/thoughts/worlds/options never considered.
Adding them as building blocks to the lives we are creating. Integrating the new into the fabric of who we are. Giving us multiple opportunities to live more fully while traveling along our unique life’s journey.