Wanting Tragedy

Yesterday in class, we talked briefly about the desire for tragedy. Of course, no one wants their house to burn down. No one wants their child to die. However, there is something to be said for the rush that tragedy brings. It breaks us from the cycle of everyday life. We are no longer numb. Even though it hurts, we really feel something. For that moment, you go from fuzzy black and white to bold HD colors. I don't necessarily think that it is the tragedy itself that we hope for. It's the intensity it brings.

I remember being in elementary school, and every time I fell, I secretly hoped that I would break a bone or received some other type of injury. I wanted some type of excitement. Something that would give me special attention outside of the mundane.

I do believe there are times when people sub-consciencely want bad things to happen. However, I think that the desire for tragedy comes from people who have not truly experienced it. There is a day in my mind, from my life, that sticks out in my memory in crystal clear HD, but I know without a doubt that there isn't even a small piece of me that wanted it to happen. (If you want to know the story, feel free to ask me in person. I just don't feel like I can write the story down on this blog tonight and deliver it right.)