What is fear? It’s basically one response to the suspicion that something that you want or have is not safe. That it’s threatened.

Fear is rational, in this way, because nothing is safe. Everything is always in danger of ending, being taken away, etc.

But is fear the right response to the natural order of things? Should we be afraid of everything simply because it will eventually be taken away or end?

Fear makes us want to protect. Hide it, bring it into a crowded area where it won’t get noticed, attack, distract, claim as yours, turn it into an absolute, forget that it’s in danger.

But in the end nothing can be protected, everything will end. Can we protect and enjoy at the same time?

Is enjoyment a possible replacement for fear? Isn’t enjoyment as much of a reaction to the suspicion that something will end as fear?

Isn’t the enjoyment of things that will end really the only true way to protect that thing, to justify its existence in the first place?

Then what threatens enjoyment? Is it safe?

This entry was posted by Buster on Thursday, August 20th, 2009 at 7:44 pm. It is filed under Defining enjoyment. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.