Eye opening

After I moved to Canada, I learned that no matter how much “salt” you’ve eaten in life, there are still things out there that would surprise you.

For example, it never crossed my mind that there could be many different utilities companies to choose from. I was used to what it was like in Malaysia – Telekom Malaysia (TM) sort of has a monopoly as the internet service provider. West Malaysia relies solely on Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB) for electricity, with Sabah and Sarawak similarly dependent on Sabah Electricity and Sarawak Energy respectively.

Another example is having multiple airports in the same city. I grew up with the mindset that there is always only one airport in each city. When I found out that Toronto has four airports, it unexpectedly blew my mind.

The night before this, I watched a technique-critique video in which a hunter/tracker was commenting on hunting/tracking scenes portrayed in a few movies. In my humble opinion as a layman, he demonstrated a high-level of expertise:

• recognizing firearms and critiquing hardware
• explaining hunting ethics, safety and techniques
• distinguishing firearm reports (commenting that the sound did not match the firearm displayed on screen)
• expounding on prehistoric hunting methods, showing good knowledge about anthropology

He showed that hunters are more than just mindless, gun-loving, blood-lusting, heartless, animal murderers. Admittedly, that was the general impression I had of hunters because of the negative portrayal through films and TV shows. That video changed my perspective significantly.

So my points are:

1. We have restrictions in the way we think and perceive things.

It could be the environment in which we grew up. It could be the things people around had taught and reinforced in us. It could be the movies we watched. It could be our personal experiences.

2. We have to learn how to recognize those restrictions, and how to break through them.

It could involve visiting (or moving) to a new country. It could involve reading more books. It could involve watching short documentary clips on YouTube. It could involve talking about difficult topics with your friends.

Final words: This world is so big and full of fascinating, disturbing and intriguing stuff (for lack of a better all-encompassing word). Try not to be too rigid and lock yourself up.