On Shattered Hubris

Most of the batch went rafting on the Sunday. Yours truly skipped the adventure sport. How many times can a man bop up and down in a raft over the same rapids?

From second hand reports of rafting, one gathers that the said event was the highlight of the FC so far. I salute the spirit of eternal curiosity and enthusiasm among my fellow OTs who had it in them to raft in the infernal cold waters immediately a day after pounding the tarmac on a 10km run.

Over the past couple of days, one was in an artificial psyched mood over an essay that needed to be written. An important lesson this exercise taught me was to curb my hubris. It was a good lesson. I assumed that I would write not one but three essays of 5k words each. In final analysis, I was lucky I could complete at least one and that with a vast deficit of words required. Thus eating the humble pie, which despite the bitter taste was filling, I slipped the offending inferior literary work under the hypothetical online door with barely minutes left. The adrenaline rush was nice. That however does not explain the binge eating and insane caffeine injection. Or the compulsive movie watching and fiction reading (not fictional!). The movie 'Paprika' (2006) by Satoshi Kon was a revelation. I had watched 'Perfect Blue' (1997) and 'Millennium Actress' (2001) by the same director, earlier. 'Paprika' seemed a distillation of a decade of the finest Manga that Nippon has ever produced as interpreted by a very gifted director. I am a poor reviewer, for, even three days after watching the movie, one is in awe of the movie. This movie review in the grand old lady of news papers, is a good read.

All this gallivanting instead of sincere application of one's mind to an essay was not without its fruits. One learnt two new words-fernweh and sehnsucht. Both are German and each has a profound meaning. For example, fernweh means literally "farsickness" or "longing for far-off places." It may reflect an intense urge for self-development by experiencing the unknown, confronting unforeseen challenges, getting to know unfamiliar cultures, ways of life and behaviours. (Wikipedia).  Sehnsuch means yearning, longing (wistful or melancholy desire). It has been referred to as “life’s longings” or an individual’s search for happiness while coping with the reality of unattainable wishes. (Wikipedia).