 "It’s routine life, the greatest deadlock..." Although these
aren't my words--they’re lyrics from an Athena song--I could sign my name under them.
Although it's disturbing to know this, when we examine the things we do during the day, we
realize that each of them has a kalyp (pattern) that we follow unconsciously.
Psychologists call these patterns “rituals,” especially when they're performed to the
point of obsession. I don’t know if you’ve ever heard of it, but obsessive-compulsive
disorder, which means placing extreme importance on such routines, is very common.
We can't consider every routine as an obsession, however. They’re all around, and too
much a part of everyday life to be abnormal. Watch your moves for instance--the way you
walk, the way you read this newspaper. At which part do you look first? The first page?
The puzzle? The more you think about it, the more you’ll realize that you have
particular ways of doing each particular thing.
So, does it make sense to you to look for a life without routines? It doesn’t to me.
Above all, these little “rituals” make life easier. I wouldn’t want to think
about how I hold the saltshaker and pour out the salt.
The routine life, as Gökhan Özo?uz of Athena calls it, seems to be inevitable at some
point. We all look for safety throughout our lives. Even extreme sports aren’t
exceptions. They’re just controlled simulations of danger, letting us reach a certain
degree of fear without giving up control.
This need for control over our lives turns into control of our present selves by our past
selves. Unconsciously, we start to follow the decisions we’ve made before, because we
know that they've allowed us to survive. We ourselves are the evidence of this.
Maybe that’s why we tend to resist our own attempts at making small changes in the way
we live, even if they’re needed. Every day we can see people all around us deciding to
get up early, eat less, start exercising, etc. But it’s so nice to stay in the land of
no surprises, as long as we’re not deported.
Enough of this “we” voice for today.... What about myself? Well, ummm... I’m a very
organized person. I get up at 7:30 every morning, no matter whether I have to or not.
Well, actually, it’s not the case at present, but I’m planning to. I’m going to
start tomorrow morning. Yes, sure...Sure....
Ýsmail O. Postalcýoðlu (POLS/II)
orhan@ug.bcc.bilkent.edu.tr
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