Stair Stepper (pt 4)

Read part 1 then part 2, followed by part 3, and then if you're still interested, read this:

         ...But you’ll also feel higher, in position and in mentality. It’s a queasy feeling, altitude sickness, perhaps, or overexertion. Nonetheless, it’s a high that you cannot ignore. When that next opportunity to jump arises, you check that your shoelaces are tied and push off with vigor. You struggle, but remember, if I did it once, I can do it again
         This mentality may work, but should be used with caution. Eventually our muscles thin and our bones break down. As time passes, we cannot handle the full climb. But our minds drive us to accelerate, to push through and just do it. 
         We keep moving up the belts, waving at those we surpass and grumbling about the individuals who always manage to stay a step ahead. And so, the distinct rungs of our society form. Much like the revolving belt at the airport, the escalator doesn’t care whether you’ve gathered your bags. It’s going to keep moving and climbing, so hold onto your hats and your competitive drive.

Photo is from this site

For now, that was the last part. If you've read them all, I'd love to hear your thoughts (preferably the positive ones, but criticisms keep me on my toes too.)

Stair Stepper (pt 2)

Continuation of a June 26 post: [Part 1]


          To say that 12 years of school can be put on one staircase would not be entirely accurate. For, within that time we make many little leaps. We leap from the dependence of our parents around age 10 or 11. At this time, we’re suddenly expected to feed ourselves and stay home on our own. We leap into the greater social world in high school. Society trusts us to operate cars, be hired into paid positions, and vote. Our hands aren’t glued to the railing, which moves at the same pace as the self-climbing steps (keep in mind, we stand on an escalator, not a stationary staircase). We are expected to rely less on that guard as time progresses, for eventually we’re on a stairwell with no glass protection around it, no railing to cling to. Nothing but years of airspace to fall into surrounds us in our adult years. Therefore, we must gain our independence early on, when safety nets still exist, to ensure our readiness. 

            As one might imagine, all of these stair-machines can generate a lot of stress in society. When you look at the steps your peers accomplish, at the ground your parents cover, at the levels your idols have succeeded, you feel pressured to walk faster, to climb harder. But when do your calves give in? When have you reached your final height? Is it even possible to reach the top? 

Stair Stepper (pt 1)

More times than not, we are convinced that we aren’t doing enough. We constantly compare ourselves to those above us, and even to those on our same social or professional tier. We wonder why Joey in the next cubicle seems to make more sales, or why Angelina stars in more lead roles. Why does Susie get more phone numbers, or Stephen more athletic awards?

We ask ourselves all of these questions in vain, because life is an escalator. We climb constantly in an attempt to reach the levels of those higher than we, forgetting that those we try to catch up with are often moving too. The climb is constant. It’s perpetual. But beyond that, it's individual. To each his own revolving staircase! We will find no metal grate to receive us at the top. Instead, we must jump when we reach the end of our belt. We have to take a leap from solid ground we’ve been climbing, and pray to God that we land safely on that next moving step. To make the process harder, we must keep running, lest we fall behind the other stair steppers, our competitors.

            We see this leap at the end of very specific periods in our lives. (Think of the coined term ‘stepping-stone.’) Take, for instance, Kindergarten. A child spends each of the 2,000 or so days leading up to the first day of school learning the basic skills of life, eating and walking and engaging in short conversation. Parents teach their kids to tie their shoes, to say please and thank you and not to slurp juice boxes. A child’s brain absorbs these tidbits and compartmentalizes them daily. But they don’t remain on the “table-manners step” for long, for more challenges wait just ahead, and the belt is running out. When a child turns 5, his parents must drop his tiny hands and watch him leap onto their next set of stairs: school and education. 

[Part 2]