One of my favorite memories of sixth grade (there weren't that many, as I was an unathletic kid who wore glasses, was overweight, and could be labeled as a "nerd") was the 2-week course in social studies with Ms. Skukanec (I guess my memory isn't that good, because I can't remember the exact spelling of her name) about Greek myths, where we went in-depth into Zeus, Hera, Poseidon, Hades, Jason and the Argonauts, the Minotaur and the labyrinth, the Minotaur, etc., etc. I was so fascinated by all the different gods the Greeks had like the god of war (Ares), the god of wisdom (Athena) and all the jealousy and in-fighting they had on Mount Olympus. I remember not being satisfied by the assigned reading but wanting to do more, so our teacher allowed extra credit, one unit on each new story/myth we completed. I devoured those because (as I comprehend now) I liked learning and thought it was fun, something not every 6th grader would agree with. Probably one of the best gifts I got, other than having a very healthy body composition: I enjoy learning (about certain things). I just never got into chemistry, physics, and other sciences unfortunatley, but I was always ready to pick up a book, learn about the characters, or learn a bit of history.
One of the Greek myths that was not as well-known are in Homer's the Odyssey, featuring the hero Odysseus and his journey home after the Trojan War, where he had to navigate his ship to pass through a narrow passage between 2 equally horrible monsters, either the snake-like Scylla who had 6 heads biting any sailors to try to pass through on one side or the sea monster Charybdis on the other side. It is now synonymous with choosing the lesser of 2 evils, a fancier way of saying "between a rock and a hard place." I like the analogy because it's so visual, as I can almost place myself in the shoes of Odysseus (or Jason of the Argonauts who also had to go through Scylla and Charybdis) sailing to this disaster zone and seeing the dragon-like monster on one side and the swirling whirlpool containing the sea monster on teh other side and trying to assess the risks. I'm a pretty risk-averse person, so it would be pretty difficult for me, but I suppose I'd follow Odyssey's lead of going through Scylla who ate 6 of the men aboard as opposed to risking Charybdis which could have sunk the entire ship.
Luckily I don't often have to make such difficult decisions of choosing lesser evils, as most of my decisions are like "should I have a sandwich or a taco for lunch?" or "should I do laundry today or not?" but sometimes when I'm running in a new area and I encounter a fork in the road, I find myself like Odysseus trying to choose between the sketchy road with lots of potholes and construction, or this other path that has lots of people on scooters or bicycles doing dangerous stunts, also with people walking theri dogs who might (like Scylla!) bite at me. (Or when there's rain on the ground, should I go through that dip in the sidewalk that has a big puddle in the middle and sinking my shoe in, getting my socks wet? Difficult decisions indeed. I pity Odyssesus.
Or sometimes I'm faced with the decision after some sell-offs on Wall Street to sell some poorly performing stocks, like the Chinese stocks that have gone done substantially (50% or so!) in the last year due to government shutdown. Do I cut my losses in Alibaba stock or PDD (Pinduoduo stock?) Sign.
Fantasize on,
Robert Yan
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