A fresh start to the new year! Even though January doesn'tseem to be the best (or rather, the worst) month to start a new resolution, good or otherwise, the majority of people still choose this. I haven't yet figured out if this will follow a different pattern anno 2022, but with various measures, restrictions and uncertainties on the timeline, I can imagine it feels more challenging to make plans. So what can we look forward to at the beginning of the new year?
My view is that it is the certainty of hope. A hope that something beautiful can be made of each day and you will have the opportunity to grow. After all, a big change starts with something small. And many small things, over and over again, can eventually grow big. This may not happen overnight, as it very occasionally can, but time may be precisely what is needed for a strong end result. Looking at nature that already gives us the example; a weeping willow takes years to grow into a mature weeping tree, even though it is the fastest growing tree. Even if you are not yet at the destination of your dream, each day is still 24 hours, 1440 minutes or 86400 seconds closer in terms of time toward it.
That this is easier said than done is evident when I put it to the test and look at my own running ambitions. How wonderful the early mornings that I run through a quiet Amsterdam with rising sun and then warm myself at home with a fresh cup of coffee.... These days are golden! Yet running a full or half marathon has yet to materialize despite being on my list several times. Why is this?
As with many things, it starts with the question: If I really think I want this and it is so simple, why hasn't it happened yet? More than once the intention has not been fulfilled because the leap is too big. So for example, from never doing a push-up exercise to 30 days in a row. In many cases doomed to failure. Now there are things that are better done all at once, like pulling a Band-Aid off a hairy arm, but perhaps as far as other goals are concerned, it might be wise to break it down into a series of slightly more modest steps to make it happen. The smaller the transition, the easier the step. Right?
Eubulides of Miletus at least in the 4th century B.C. thought so. He described the Sorites paradox in his Greek home office. Named after sorites meaning "hope. It boils down to roughly the following:
1. A grain of sand is not a grain of sand.
2. If Z grains of sand are not a sand pile, then Z grains of sand plus one grain of sand are still not a sand pile.
3. Two grains of sand are not a sand pile (from 1 and 2).
4. Three grains of sand are not a sand heap (from 2 and 3).
Conclusion: any amount of sand grains is not a sand heap.
If we accept this reasoning then a collection of sand grains the size of Cheops' pyramid is still not a sand heap.... Something evidently goes wrong in this paradox, although it may not be immediately clear where it goes wrong. Yet we can also use this assertion about grains of sand to our advantage to extend, shall I say, a lap run to a half, or even a full, marathon:
1. Running 1 kilometer is not far.
2. If T kilometer running is not far, then 100 meters longer than T running is not far either.
3. Running 1 kilometer is not far (from 1 and 2).
4. Running 1.2 kilometers is not far (from 2 and 3). And so on
Conclusion: running a 42-kilometer marathon is not far.
This is great! If I apply sorites reasoning, I can run an entire marathon in 420 days without ever having taken a step. Even though it sounds too good not to be true, we do run into some practical problems.
The first problem may be time. This way, I need at least 90 days to run a 10-kilometer lap. Provided I do that all days connected and start with 1 kilometer. Now I can relate to piece by piece, but a slightly smoother way to convince my gut that these reasoning steps are a good idea would be nice. On the other hand, run an extra 100 meters every day to realize and feel that this is not far and then I will have evolved into a running talent by February 2023? Might take a little longer than hoped, but fine.
The second problem is our feeling. Because now 100 meters does not seem like a sharp boundary between what is far and what is not, yet that boundary can feel that way. It's like time, and I may be alone in this, but 06:59 feels considerably earlier than 07:00. In fact, a world of difference! By 1 minute ... but 60 seconds. Should we also begin to grasp time in minutes rather than hours, it is not about the difference between 07:00 and 06:59 but the difference between 420 and 419. The psychological barrier of the hour earlier is thus broken. I can apply this same trick by saying that 100 meters is 328 feet. Then, just like that, I go from 3280 to 3608 feet. Boy, the extra distance I cover in a day! It may be a bit of a detour, but if it helps, it helps.
But, I then ask myself, isn't this a very small bit of fooling myself? Absolutely. And yet... Is that what Eubulides was trying to bring about (in part); the small steps are so small that you can easily do them. So I lay off the (running) theories and paradoxes and just go run that lap.
The same goes for hope. Because even with a glimmer of hope and love, we have the fantastic opportunity to make a wonderful start to each day. And you can't start that early enough... The temporality of people and things was clearly demonstrated in 2021. Let's make 2022 not a year, but 365 days. Or actually 525,600 minutes. And each day, offers another new opportunity.
From KW9, I wish everyone 365 days full of hope, joy and beautiful growth! To which we contribute by providing an inspiring environment, new connections and fun events.
The small step to pick up my running again? Taking the route along the Amsterdam Light Festival. The theme this year is Celebrate Light and showcases the 10 best works of the past 10 years. An appropriate theme to start 2022 with and a good incentive for a lap! You can still walk the route through Jan. 23. No need to run, just enjoy it with a mulled wine or hot chocolate in your hand as an evening activity!
Happy January,
Esther
