Theory and Practice

For a couple of years now, research has shown that the majority of sinus infections are viral and not stopped by antibiotics. I have in light of this taken my most recent bout of throbbing head pain in stride, waiting - as we so often hear - to "let the virus run its course." After a week+ of missing classes (though this hardly deviates from my normal schedule) and feeling like a small Korean family is steaming rice in my frontal sinuses, I'm giving in:

"Gimmi the Z-pack 3-pack, doc, and don't hesitate to throw in a few Percs and Vics as a reward for my stoic endurance.
"Cough syrup with codeine, eh? I'll just stick with the antibiotics."

I once heard a wise old man say (actually he was a 23 year-old playing the Wise Old Man in a short lived off-Broadway production), "In theory, theory and practice are the same, but in practice they're different." Deep down, I believe my sinuses are in the throws of a viral attack which will achieve a sustainable ceasefire in the next 3 or 4 days. But, sure as the day is long, I'll be taking those antibiotics like my intracranial pressure depends on it and credit them for my soon to be good nasal health. Medical school and all, I find comfort in the confines of this long held assumption about reality and continue to cling to it when the going gets infected.

I wonder if my generation will - if any generation has - change who we are based on what we've learned and not simply teach it to our progeny. It seems like a faster way to enhance our social evolution than leapfrogging through time in 20 year gaps. The world, Our world, creeps and crawls like a panther stalking its prey. It moves through the night like the air around it is growing ever thicker, muscles straining, tensing, as it slows before-

It Pounces.

Like a gunshot. Like a snapped rubberband. With a war or a march or a hunger strike, we are shaken to our roots as the next generation finds its footing. In the time it takes their elders to shrug, a new paradigm becomes the norm (or not, as the 60's showed us), gets settled and sticks around for a while.

But,

what if we kept changing? What if revolution was a way of life, keeping us constantly on our toes - thinking about and questioning new ideas, and moving Forward? Would we, as many conservatives fear, lose our grip on what little truth we have and forego civilization for chaos? Would we step into more profound truths that have eluded even the most enlightened revolutionaries for lack of concert in their musings?

I suppose it comes down to intentionality in looking for the Real and acting accordingly no matter how much it makes you squirm. Everything's on the table, no strings attached, zero APR*. That sounds nice. Scary, but nice.

I'm gonna give my sinuses another day to sort themselves out before starting the antibiotics.







*(for 6 month trial period only, then 29.97% variable APR on purchases and 19.97% APR on Balance Transfers through 9/31/2009.)