Little Boxes

Who's fool are you? How many times do you plan to make that mistake? Oh come on, you know the one I'm talking about? You don't? Ok then, I'll spell it out. How often have you pigeonholed somebody? Put them in a box and filled it with everything you've decided that they are? It's the easiest, most common, and asinine mistake you and I will make. I expect you've already done it this week, just like you'll do it next week, too. Regular, predictable, stupid.
So why don't we learn?
Here's my take. We like patterns and predictability. We like knowing where everything fits because that way we're better able to handle it. So we end up categorizing everything in a way that makes sense to us. Trouble is, it's a bit over confident, isn't it? I mean, exactly what do we know about anybody? It's a bit brazen to expect them to fit into those little boxes and dare I suggest also a little unfair? And when somebody comes along who doesn't have a box that fits them, or who appears to actively resist climbing into your own bespoke pigeonhole it can prove something of a strain.
You may have noticed, I don't do boxes. You try to put me in one and I shall not thank you for it.  I happen to think that we need to let each other breathe just a bit more. I've moaned about how we're slaves to convention, and as I change I see this more and more vividly. In my own ramshackle way I'm asking you to put the box down. Step away from the box. 
More than that, don't be so eager to climb into your own. I few blogs back I pointed out that there will never be another you, so what are you going to do with the you that you've been given? I don't know what time of day you're reading this, but why not pause and go somewhere where you can see the sky or the stars and ponder this? It's your life, your gig, and you have only so many days to act out the script. One day you'll be too old to do some of the things you haven't done yet. Do you want to regret that or are you willing to saddle up and head out into the wild blue yonder to where your hopes and dreams reside? Isn't it about time you stopped viewing them through the binoculars of convention and actually got up close and personal? I'm not saying that success is guaranteed, but if nothing else the journey's going to teach you a thing or two. So pony up, people. Aim and fire. leave those boxes on the ground and kick aside any that you see. And if people cannot handle this then so much the worse for them.