Familiarity breeds familiarity.

“If the others heard me talking out loud they would think that I am crazy,” he said aloud. “But since I am not crazy, I do not care. And the rich have radios to talk to them in their boats and to bring them the baseball.”

-Old Man and the Sea

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In my neighborhood, many people walk regularly: they walk their dogs and walk with their spouses and families. But one man in particular is different. He looks down at the ground and talks to himself.

I really can’t say if everything’s okay in his life. But my temptation is to think that because I see him a lot, then he must be fine. What if he’s not? He has no phone and no bluetooth headset. Just good old-fashioned out loud self-talk au naturel.

Familiarity breeds familiarity.

Just because he’s familiar doesn’t mean he’s not a threat. It’s tempting to say, “Oh, that’s that guy who walks around talking to himself every day. It’s no big deal.” Even though I see that man all the time, the truth of the matter is that I don’t know him. What if he truly was mentally ill and dangerous?

The most dangerous villains are not those who are consistently dangerous but those who are sporadically dangerous. You’re not sure when you can trust them and when that villain will snap.

But the same goes for ideas: What are the ideas you entertain and, because they “walk around” your neighborhood every day, they feel safe? The thoughts about yourself and others, the thoughts about your spouse and your friends, your thoughts about your comfort and your pain. What if you're letting them wander around the neighborhood even though they're potentially wild and dangerous. They appear consistent, familiar, and inane. What if they’re not?

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