Welcome, guest [login | register]

Posted by Alicia on April 7, 2008 at 7:43:53 pm EDT
In reply to Into the Wild posted by Trailspace on April 7, 2008 at 12:48:00 pm EDT

Bill, you’re quite right that I’ve made a mistake or two (well many), and I’m sure I’ll make more in the future. If I don’t, consider me self-deluded. Hopefully I’ve learned something from at least a few of them.

Maybe it got lost in my blog, but I think we’re actually on the same page here.

I didn't intend to imply that no one should take risks. What struck me was my own reaction to the McCandless story. At 22, while I understood his idealism and desire to get away, I simply didn’t identify with him and was blinded by my own judgment of some of his choices.

Returning to the story (in movie form) more than a decade later, I surprised myself by being so non-judgmental of him and his choices. Conventional wisdom expects you to be less idealistic over time, but I found that I was far less rigid and accepted his story for the human one it was. This time around I didn’t judge him. I simply observed (also a credit to the movie).

I honestly think part of that open-mindedness comes from listening to the range of voices we get on Trailspace. Thanks to our community members’ shared experiences I’ve changed my mind a number of times and broadened my opinions.

I completely agree that we can always learn from others, and that was what I was trying to get across—that it's more valuable to learn from others' mistakes than play Monday morning quarterback from the comfort of your couch (that criticism is intended toward my younger more rigid self). We're all human. McCandless paid the ultimate price for his risks, but they were his risks to take (or not).

So, that’s why I’m now going to reread Krakauer’s book.

Maybe I’m growing more flexible with age.

Replies

View: flat | threaded

There have been no replies

Post a Reply

Before replying, please read the complete thread.