What Shrek didn't tell you | Day 97 of 100
3min read
Onions have layers! Ogres have layers! Shrek
People have layers. Complexities. Nuances. This can make some people seem like an enigma. They first layer is like first meeting someone, they are likely showing you what you want to see or at least what the collective thinks is the right thing to see. Meet this person again, you begin to pass to the next layer of getting to know someone a bit better. Talking about their personal life, or opinions. Spend a bit more time with this person and you may begin to find things about them that don't align with either your worldview or your model you have assembled for this person. Perhaps they're of a different political view, or maybe they just put the milk in their tea before taking the teabag out (who does that?!). Often people can turn away at this layer.
If we stick with it though and spend a bit more time, we begin to understand why the person is the way they are. This is the layer that Shrek hadn't let other fictional characters explore. Eventually, though, we run out of layers. (This is the part that Shrek doesn't tell you). That inner middle 'layer', which I'm not sure is a layer so someone that knows more about shapes than me let me know, is the core. People have a core. I'd probably argue (after a beer) that Orges have a core too. But what is a person's core?
Physiologically speaking, it's where that six-pack should be. But from a mindset or 'being' standpoint it's up for interpretation I think. For me, I think your core can be best demonstrated, or explored when we're going through hardship. Which would mean to see what someone else is like 'at their core' would be to share some hardship with them. Yesterday's post about endurance and testing yourself is one way (I think) of artificially instigating hardship. As a result, seeing how you react at your core. Shrek of course did actually show you this through his adventure and hardships, but didn't tell you explicitly.
In other news, it's good to see exiel back on write.as showing us some of their layers.