Monday, December 7, 2009

Adventures vs Provincials

From my vantage point of traveling and meeting people around the globe mostly South America I've noticed a schism in the culture of Western Civilization.

There are two types of people, two types of destinations, opposite philosophies competing against each other.

You can call it many things but I will call this competition: Adventurers Vs. Provincials.

An adventure is drawn to freedom. A provincial looks for security.
An adventure wants to see the world. A provincial wants to build a nest.
An adventurer is open to new ideas. A provincial takes comfort in reinforcing the views of themselves and their friends.
An adventurer wants their significant other to grow on an individual basis. A provincial wants to see growth in the relationship.
An adventurer sees a cubical as prison. A provincial takes comfort in walls.
An adventurer has a diverse group of friends. A provincial still hangs with their highschool buddies.
An adventurer wants to get out and change the world. A provincial wants to stay home and watch tv.
An adventurer likes to trust people. A provincial wants to seize control.(I am biased of course for the adventure lifestyle if you haven't noticed)
An adventure can't settle down to become a provincial. You can't change your stripes.

Unfortunately many people use getting married and having kids as a way of trying to control an adventurer. I have seen other ways like getting trapped in loans. This only can work short term.

Sometimes I can see getting married young to be an adventure. It's all the reasons why we do the things we do that count.

An adventurer welcomes the unpredictable and the challenge of meeting it. A provincial wants to squeeze luck and chance out of existence. They want to turn an adventure into something ordinary and predictable.

So which one are you Adventurer or Provincial?
I do think that everyone has both traits. There are traits of both but in the end one or the other wins out and dominates a persons decisions.
My problem is when an adventure acts 'temporarily' like a provincial (usually under pressure from a provincial) and vice versa.

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