The Ride (A metaphor in progress)

[kattsand]

This is a thought that's been running through my mind for a while. It's just a metaphor and I don't know if this is going anywhere. I'm just gonna share.

Think of your life as a car ride.

When you are a baby you are in the front seat sitting there with a parent in your own special seat. You are somewhat in control of the ride. If you take a piss or **** yourself the ride will stop for a moment and diapers will be changed. You are a person of importance. You scream and yell without people really getting upset (because they know it's just the way it is). You are not an authority but things will be done after your schedule.

You grow up a bit. You are no longer a baby, you are a child that can control you bladder and so on. You've been demoted to the back seat of the car.
If you yell and scream you will be told to shut up and like the situation. You can't control the ride in the same way as a baby. You are not an authority in any way. Your parents make the decisions and you are along for the ride.

You grow up some more. You are now in your early teens. Bladder control and so on are a fact that you understand (hopefully), there's no discussion about that anymore. You are still in the back seat. Something has changed though, your parents might listen to some of your directions in which way to drive. You might have some small knowledge about shortcuts or whatever that they might not know about and they will occasionally listen to your directions.

Time goes on and you are now closing in on adulthood. You are learning how to drive, a parent still by your side but you are now in control of the ride. You're in the front seat again and pauses in the ride based on your needs are more likely to be accepted. You've been given freedom (or an illusion of freedom) and your parent know that. Mistakes will occur but you have your parent sitting by your side and he/she can help you out when that happens.

One day you wake up. You are now an adult. You have your drivers license, you have your own car and you can drive perfectly. You can take your car where ever you want to. Bring all your friends and maybe pick up strange hitchhikers. You are in perfect control of the ride. There are times that you have your parents in the car but now they are sitting beside you or even in the back seat. You know your routes and they know you know your routes. They might have some ideas about shortcuts or good places to stop but they don't tell you to do that, they are now suggesting. They know that they are along for the ride when they enter the car[.]

My ride is somewhere beyond this but I can't put more of it in writing yet, I believe it will be easier later in life.

This is not a perfect metaphor of my life. I understand that people might have trouble relating to this and I know that people in cultures different to mine might have trouble applying this to their way of life.
But like I said. This is just a thought that's been running through my mind that I want to share.

[Thomas H]

I like it. Makes sense to me.

The title of this post made me think of one of my favorite quotes, from comedian Bill Hicks. Different meaning from yours but worth a look:
From Bill Hicks - Wikiquote

The world is like a ride in an amusement park, and when you choose to go on it you think it's real because that's how powerful our minds are. The ride goes up and down, around and around, it has thrills and chills, and it's very brightly colored, and it's very loud, and it's fun for a while. Many people have been on the ride a long time, and they begin to wonder, "Hey, is this real, or is this just a ride?" And other people have remembered, and they come back to us and say, "Hey, don't worry; don't be afraid, ever. Because this is just a ride." And we...kill those people. "Shut him up! I've got a lot invested in this ride, shut him up! Look at my furrows of worry, look at my big bank account, and my family. This has to be real." It's just a ride. But we always kill the good guys who try and tell us that, you ever notice that? And let the demons run amok? But it doesn't matter, because it's just a ride. And we can change it any time we want. It's only a choice. No effort, not work, no job, no savings of money. Just a simple choice, right now, between fear and love.

[kattsand]

Thanks!

Bill Hicks used to end his shows with that if I remember it right. Love the man.