Reality
reality noun
1 the world or the state of things as they actually exist, as opposed to an idealistic or notional idea of them: he refuses to face reality | Laura was losing touch with reality.
2 the state or quality of having existence or substance: youth, when death has no reality.
Lets talk about reality
Do you believe that we will ever see mutant spiders on earth? What if I told you it is possible? Sounds crazy I know, like cuckoo roll your eyes while circling your pointer finger in the air directed at the side of your temple crazy. I know I have some explaining to do.
If we go back to the definition of dream and fantasy and reality, remember: a dream can not exist in a fantasy, but a fantasy can exist in a dream, and reality is a thing that is actually experienced or seen. Experienced or seen being key.
A reality
We all have our own versions of reality. Take for example a high profile celebrity athlete like LeBron James, millions of people know who he is, people want to be him, they emulate him. His lavish reality is much different than that of a primitive Sentinelese tribesman, whom still exist today. Not many people know about the Sentinelese, they live in huts, hunt, grow and gather their food, and will shoot an arrow at anyone who attempts to step foot onto their isolated island. Both of their realities are different than each others, both are different than yours.
Reality we live in
If we haven’t experienced “something” does that make it not part of reality? Look around where your sitting at right now, you might see your computer, chair, or possibly a coffee maker, television or car. Those things are real right? They are part of reality if you knew they existed or not. To the Sentinelese tribe they don’t exist, those items aren’t part of their reality, but it’s part of “reality” as a whole. If you tried to explain to them how a coffee maker worked, or maybe even what coffee is, they’d think it was fantasy. They might think that you’re fantasy.
Reality we create
Movies start with a thought, get expressed in words into a tangible form (written, audio, graphics, things etc), then through the creative process the thought is made into a final motion picture; once something is created, it is real, it is part of reality, no matter how crazy like a mutant spider or lame like a shoe horn. In short, thoughts put on paper can become part of other peoples reality, thoughts in your head can only be part of your reality.
Dream, Fantasy and Reality
The dream–fantasy–reality connection
What were fantasies to most, were dreams to a few, where then realities to all.
Dream and fantasy that are now reality
Imagine the first person who took flight or deep ocean dived or walked on the moon or biked across the country or performed heart transplant or became the first black President of the United States. These were all born as a fantasy that existed within a dream and now is part of reality.
The wheel, nuclear fission, moldboard plow, assembly line, anesthesia, personal computer, printing press, paper, the internet, semiconductor electronics, photography, cement, electricity, sanitation systems, air conditioning, steam engine, industrial steelmaking, refining, drilling of oil, nitrogen fixation, penicillin, vaccination, the pill, refrigeration, optical lens, telegraph, telephone, radio, television, internal combustion engine, automobile, airplane, steam engine, sailboat, compass, rocketry, gregorian calendar, alphabetization, gunpowder, nuclear fission, pasteurization, archimedes’ screw.
Improbable to probable
Is it possible to engineer a mutant spider to scale that towers over the tallest sky scrappers? Yes it is, without a doubt, google “modern marvels” if you want some examples of improbable to probable engineering. So keep that in mind while doing the following exercise.
Mind Expanding Exercise #1: Building your mutant spider.
Create this entire scene in your head as if it was a movie: Money and resources aren’t an issue for you. See it, smell it, feel it, taste it, hear it.
Where would you begin building your mutant spider? Imagine the space you would need to build it, how big is the building? Is it in the city, country, underground or on a ship in the middle of the ocean? How many people are working on the project? What type of tools and machinery are being used?
How are you participating in it’s creation? Are you getting your hands dirty, or standing back directing? imagine the entire construction from nothing to finished. How do you start the project? Do you gather everyone around and give a speech? What would you say? What are other peoples reactions? How does the building process go?
Are there any problems that come up along the way? How are they resolved? What does it look like when it’s halfway constructed? Do you take breaks for holidays? What does it look like when no one is around?
How do you know when the project is complete? What does your finished mutant spider look like? Is it shinny with hard edges or furry with rounded edges, does it feel soft like skin or hard like metal? Does it smell like a unbathed animal or like motor oil? if you want to get brave, describe what it tastes like.
Now you know what it looks, feels, smells and tastes like. You flip the on switch. What sound does it make? What does it do? Does it move? Make a noise? How do you respond to it’s reaction?
What does it do next? You get the idea… This is your story so create your version of it.
Something to think about
What controls your reality? What limitations are you putting on your life? What if what is keeping you back from turning your fantasies or dreams into reality is simply the limitations of your rational mind.
We already live in a fantasy world full of dreamt up realities; currency, time, status, and ownership of things, to name a few. We are living in a fantasies, in dreams, that is our reality. Are you living in your fantasy, your dream, your reality or someone else’s?
Definitions
improbable
adjective
tangible
adjective
noun (usu. tangibles)