This past weekend, we took my son to King’s Dominion for his birthday. Visiting an amusement park is an exercise in extremes – summer at its sweetest, its stickiest, its sweatiest, its sunniest (even when it’s cloudy). It occurred to me that the rides and the riders in all their glory also offer some “extreme” lessons – about life, work, relationships.
Last Saturday, I observed a few different categories of people at the amusement park. First, there were the thrill seekers.
- They set ambitious goals for the day – the fastest turn, the scariest dip, the highest peak.
- Their willingness to invest was great – they waited in long lines, their rides often commanded a premium price or special [“standing tall,” “I can do it!”] height requirements.
- They seemed to relish the feeling of being spent at a ride’s end while still wanting and ready to do it all over again.
The second category of people coveted relative safety and comfort. These were the “merry-go-round” folks:
- They chose a less taxing – albeit still fun – approach to their day.
- Their “costs” were limited – the lines and assaults on their system seemed more tolerable.
- Their dizziness or nausea was short-lived – a bi-product of going “simply” around and around.
At the park, there is also evidence of unique approaches to relationships.
- The “thrilled” patrons seek the hands of strangers and scream to their (happy or unhappy) heart’s content through the highs and lows and hairpin turns.
- The carousel riders enjoy a more solitary experience – single-handily jockeying for position, waiting perhaps for a that one prince or princess on a shiny white horse to come around the bend.
There are no right or wrong answers here.
- In life and work and relationships, some of us can “stomach,” even seek out the extreme ups and downs (e.g. the unwieldy projects, the weekend chaos, passion at its most painful or pleasant), while some of us prefer and find most peace or satisfaction in a more predictable pace or tempo (e.g. “set in stone” organization charts, timelines, to do lists, going “steady”).
- For some, the “roller coaster” brings up deeply entrenched fears, physical responses that can border on harmful while others depend on or crave the adrenaline.
Yet, I believe that’s roller coasters and carousels present only one option. The amusement park also offers entry into whole world in which we can live, work and connect in between the extremes. When I think about what is possible in the middle, I think of bumper cars.
- One still has the opportunity to drive his/her own experience.
- There can be opportunities for intense speed and connection with others but it doesn’t have to be that way all of the time.
- One can also sufficiently slow down and retreat to the sidelines to quietly, calmly, diffierntly appreciate the sweet and the sunny.
The amusement park experience, in essence, leaves us with opportunities to reflect on the rides on which we choose to embark and our role as riders. To inspire your further thinking, ask yourself:
- Am I a roller coaster or carousel kind of person?
- What interest, if any, do I have in a different kind of ride (or relationship with other riders)? What are the pros/cons?
- How might a change impact me?
- What stands most in my way?
- What first step can I take?