Sun's Out Buns Out

You have been warned. 

Sometimes in life you have to get naked. Bare it all and face the world without any kind of buffer. Sometimes figuratively and sometimes literally. Whether it's standing up for something you believe in or putting yourself out there after a bad relationship, or just wanting to stand on the rim of one of the seven wonders of the world in nothing but your birthday suit. "Why that last one?" you ask. Why?Because it's there! Because I exist! Because sometimes you gotta strip down, face the world and say "This is me! This is what I believe! Do your worst because though I may falter I will always persevere!" 

It is important to know yourself and to know what you believe in. That can be difficult. So many times we pick sides and adopt all the beliefs that come with it. Red ties and blue ties. Black and white. Cats and dogs. That's life, one choice after another. It's exhausting! It is probable why people just pick a side and adopt the entire creed, because that's easy. Making an informed decision about every little thing takes time, it means you might upset people, it means you have to stand up for something you believe in even when everyone else thinks you're wrong. It means you have to bare yourself to criticism, to ridicule and maybe more. But we all came in to this world naked and ignorant, a blank slate. From the day we are born we strive to become less ignorant through our experience because the best teacher is experience. When we are toddlers our parents say "don't touch the stove, it will burn you" this is second hand information. The real lesson is learned when we touch the stove and we have to suffer, through that experience we gain knowledge. 

What do I know? I only know what my brain tells me. I can only know for certain what I have personally experienced, everything else is second hand information subject to scrutiny. So why stand naked in front of the Grand Canyon? Because I wanted the experience, I wanted to know how it felt to see something amazing without any barriers. What did I gain from that experience? Well it gave me the inspiration to write this rant. It helped me see myself, to understand in that moment the only tools I have to make my way in this world are my mind and my will.

Perhaps you think I am crazy, coming up with all of this after only a few minutes standing bare assed in front of a big hole in the ground. But it was something I had never done before. It was something I wanted to do, so I did it. I gained the experience of doing something I was afraid of doing and through that I learned more about myself. So maybe I am some lunatic who likes to get naked at the Grand Canyon, maybe this entire rant will fall on deaf ears, maybe I'll even be criticized for it. But that is ok, because I know who I am and I like what I see.