Tonight we were chatting about something, and of course she said something brilliantly wise. When I pointed out how she always adds new perspectives to things, she said:
"I blame it on my only-childness.
This got me thinking. I mean, reflecting. I often wonder if I hadn't had to entertain myself for so long, would I spend so much time thinking and overthinking things? Taking that to a different level, would I find myself needing so much challenge in my life? It has been pointed out that I like to take things right to the edge, then step back and untangle what I've done.
It's true. Lots of times, I will (theoretically!!) build a bomb, sneak in somewhere, hide it, set the timer, run outside... and then do everything I can to diffuse it before it blows up. And why? The challenge, of course. (Plus, maybe, I feel like a hero? Oh geez, here is me overthinking again!)
Sheesh. I know I can't totally blame this on my only-childness. But... I do think E is right. Being an only child, i.e. spending a ton of time by yourself, makes you do and think some crazy stuff.
I am getting better. Doesn't always mean I won't go building bombs, but at least I am starting to recognize when I put on my "bomb squad" suit. That is a step, right?
Anyway, that's all. I was going to blog about socio-emotional selectivity theory, but that's for another day. :)
3 comments:
I bet Homeland Security just picked up your blog post & is now combing through years of your blog posts & internet hits to find out what you're really about.
But besides that... I was an only child until I was in my teens, and I agree. It's easy to overthink, noodle & re-noodle stuff simply because you're by yourself. Good post!
Now it's my turn to say something that I've said before - Erin is WAY too kind to me. Honestly, there's no streak of brilliance here...maybe a little wisdom (insight?) from time to time. Mostly the sort that comes with life experiences that I try to make some sense of. I do think that as a child I probably had way too much time on my hands to think...and now as I tackle lots of miles by bike and on foot I have lots of alone time, too! I like to think of it as "reflection" time rather than "over-thinking" time although I'm sure there's a fine line between the two!
I'm an only child, too. Overthinking is definitely part of who we are.
Post a Comment