A few weeks ago I went to the opening of the new Matisse exhibit at MoMA (thanks again Friedrich!!) and it reminded me of how important it is to have what I call "out of world" experiences. I'm not necessarily talking about "out of this world" experiences--although those are great too. What I'm talking about is when you get the chance to step out of the world you live in every day and get to experience a whole new world or, at least, one that is vastly different than yours. Engaging in a hobby doesn't really count because that is conceivably part of your world.
For me, my daily world is the corporate world with a little bit of karate and other health/fitness things. It's a lot of knowing and using corporate lingo and helping others navigate their own corporate experiences. So, when I step into MoMA and the art world I really do feel like I'm on some alternate level of existence. I certainly enjoy art but it's not something I would put myself in front of often. (Dating an artist has definitely increased the volume of art time I get these days though.)
When I do put myself in the art world or other "worlds" though, the benefits are unbelievable. First, it gives me a fresh way of looking at things. Second, I'm not a subject matter expert so it's a very humbling experience which is always good. It stretches me to think differently--and sometimes in a more playful, humorous, creative way. For example, as I was looking at a painting called Bathers and a Turtle--I was thinking to myself, "Why the hell is there a turtle in this scene (logic) and realizing the answer in the art world is, why not (creativity)?" It was also fascinating to observe the people who live in the art world so to speak. Many of them dress differently than those in my world--somewhat more creatively, sometimes even outlandishly. They use different lingo--almost as if they speak a language that I don't. Do I want to learn that language or just stay in the periphery???
Some other recent "out of world experiences":
- Surfing: I spent some time a few weekends ago mesmerized by the surfers I was watching. Surfing---another art form to be sure. I have a fantasy about being a hard core surfer (but for my intense fear of sharks, I'd give it a try). What would it be like to plan my days around the tide and weather? Something you don't worry about when you go to an office every day. To walk down the beach with a surf board with one of those little safety cords attached to my ankle--looking like I knew exactly what I was doing. Wearing cool surfing clothes.
- 3 children under the age of 7: Last weekend I was with my college roommate, her husband and their 3 children under the age of 7 who I'm totally in love with. That love does have its extreme challenges I realized. There's nothing quite like navigating sibling rivalry dynamics to suck all of the energy out of one's body. Definitely a change from my, "my life is my own and I make sure things go smoothly" routine. Appreciating the perspective of parents who manage this on a daily basis was definitely an eye opening, out of world experience!
- Small town: While with my roommate, I got to appreciate her small New England town replete with a small town square/park where they were having a farmers market. Town consists of one of two main streets & a traffic circle. Hard to compare to the vast beast of NYC. I was fascinated to see how everyone knew each other, names of kids, etc. We literally couldn't go anywhere without bumping into people they knew.
- Financial planning: I'm a liberal arts/psych girl. I don't speak finance. I have a better chance of learning French than I do becoming even remotely competent at personal finance. Yet, I know I must keep pushing forward on this front. I met with my financial advisor last week and my head is still spinning. For sure--this is not my world. I've been trying to self-educate on this front and I'm hoping the accounting/math genes on the Costigan side start to kick in soon. (More on the importance of financial planning and how it links to being able to LiveWorkEatPlay in a separate blog post).
So, while I'm not likely to become an artist, surfer, mother of 3 (although you can all have a good laugh at my expense if this does happen someday), financial wizard or small town dweller, it's been fun and eye opening to temporarily inhabit those spaces. What are you doing to live "out of your world?"
