"Crutches"

10/01/13

An interesting idea that came up in class was the idea that everyone needs a "crutch" to get through the day. Whether it be television, drinking, smoking, playing your favorite video game or reading your favorite book, the idea that everyone needs some form of escape is an interesting realization. Why do we watch movies or television shows? To escape from our daily lives for a variety of reasons. These reasons range from being unhappy about our current lives, to just wanting to "veg out", or even just to kill some time. The first being something that I feel a lot of people struggle with on a daily basis.

Sometimes the weekend isn't enough of a break for many people, so they need to find something that will help them relax during the work week. By watching T.V shows or sitting down and enjoying a move, we can completely forget about our current situation and just enjoy whatever is going on on the screen. If we have a bad day, did poorly on a test, or just need to de-stress from a hard day's work, a movie or T.V show is a perfect way of recharging. Sometimes these made up situations like in movies or T.V shows either don't work or are not enough to help someone relax. Instead they need to make something up themselves. Some people would rather indulge in their favorite author or genre and just escape into a made up world using their imaginations. They could become a secret agent or a sports star, a world renowned singer or even president. No matter what, the only important thing is that it helps people relax.

Many people will play video games as well as indulge in other crutches in order to help de-stress and escape their lives. A prime example of this is from the variety of video game clubs on campus that people belong to and indulge in once a week. This is a great way to escape because in many games you take the form of a character whose life is now in your hands entirely. We can completely forget about our own real lives when we control these characters

While these crutches seem to be generally harmless, there are other crutches that people find themselves indulging in just to get through the long days. As with most things, there are positives and negatives that go along with the territory. Many people find themselves using hard core drugs in order to help the day go by. This leads to unhealthy and negative addictions which many people are unable to handle.

This phenomenon can be seen fairly easily at a place like RPI, where students and teachers alike are challenged on a daily basis both with classes and managing school work and fun. There are many ways that people relax, or recharge throughout the week. As the week goes by, just walking on campus it is noticeable that there are more and more people outside just relaxing in the grass or out and about doing something other than work. This is to help them stay focused for the whole week and not get burnt out from working so hard. Many students and teachers have rigorous classes  to teach and learn as well as a rigorous schedule. Without a crutch, performance throughout the week would greatly decrease due to stress and an overload of work. By indulging in one form of crutch or another, we can get a much needed break from the stresses of everyday allowing us to be more productive in the long run.

"When we get too caught up in the busyness of the world, we lose connection with one another - and ourselves." (Jack Kornfield)