The Lifeguard Analogy
Jul. 27th, 2024 01:08 pmI've found myself revisiting one of my earliest quirky, reflexive metaphors several times of late, and ![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
flamingsword asked me to explain it. I think I have, at times, called it "The Lifesaver Metaphor", which is more poetic but technically incorrect twice over.
TWO LIFEGUARDS
Two Lifeguards found each other early in life. They had both helped so many people in their brief lives that they saw in one another a shared drive to help others and quickly build a loving relationship out of it. While it wasn't perfect, it often felt too good to be true. "How can another person see me so well?" they each thought.
In celebration of their love, they went on a cruise, but late the first night they both felt overboard. No one on the ship knew they were gone, and since they were the ones who checked on everyone else, who knew how long it would take for someone to notice?
They looked at each other. There was nothing else to see.
Surely my lover will save me, each thought.
They looked at each other. There was nothing else to see.
Almost at the same moment, they spoke:
"We must swim to shore," said one lifeguard. "There are islands all around us, surely we can find land and get help."
"We must stay where we are," said the other lifeguard. "Someone will notice eventually and they will come find us."
They looked at each other. There was nothing else to see.
Surely my lover will save me, each thought.
They looked at each other. There was nothing else to see.
Did they fight? Did they repeat themselves? Did they hurt one another trying to prove something to themselves? Almost certainly.
They looked at each other. There was nothing else to see.
Their thoughts remained in sync: Surely my lover will save me... My lover will save me... My lover can save me...
They looked at each other. There was nothing else to see.
My lover can't save me...
Their parting barely qualified as a goodbye or a break-up, for by this time each was entirely focused on self-preservation.
They didn't look at each other. There was nothing else to say.
One lifeguard swam away. The other lifeguard stayed in place.
And with a little effort, both plans worked: each lifeguard was rescued exactly as hoped. Once they knew the other person was safe, they did not reconnect.
Their lives diverged rapidly.
The lifeguard who swam away continued to find power in action. The lifeguard who stayed continued to find power in staying still. They each helped so many people yet protected themselves a little more than before.
With each passing year, the other lifeguard and the falling overboard and the rescue would take up a smaller space in their memories.
They stopped looking for one another. There was nothing else to see.
flamingsword asked me to explain it. I think I have, at times, called it "The Lifesaver Metaphor", which is more poetic but technically incorrect twice over.TWO LIFEGUARDS
Two Lifeguards found each other early in life. They had both helped so many people in their brief lives that they saw in one another a shared drive to help others and quickly build a loving relationship out of it. While it wasn't perfect, it often felt too good to be true. "How can another person see me so well?" they each thought.
In celebration of their love, they went on a cruise, but late the first night they both felt overboard. No one on the ship knew they were gone, and since they were the ones who checked on everyone else, who knew how long it would take for someone to notice?
They looked at each other. There was nothing else to see.
Surely my lover will save me, each thought.
They looked at each other. There was nothing else to see.
Almost at the same moment, they spoke:
"We must swim to shore," said one lifeguard. "There are islands all around us, surely we can find land and get help."
"We must stay where we are," said the other lifeguard. "Someone will notice eventually and they will come find us."
They looked at each other. There was nothing else to see.
Surely my lover will save me, each thought.
They looked at each other. There was nothing else to see.
Did they fight? Did they repeat themselves? Did they hurt one another trying to prove something to themselves? Almost certainly.
They looked at each other. There was nothing else to see.
Their thoughts remained in sync: Surely my lover will save me... My lover will save me... My lover can save me...
They looked at each other. There was nothing else to see.
My lover can't save me...
Their parting barely qualified as a goodbye or a break-up, for by this time each was entirely focused on self-preservation.
They didn't look at each other. There was nothing else to say.
One lifeguard swam away. The other lifeguard stayed in place.
And with a little effort, both plans worked: each lifeguard was rescued exactly as hoped. Once they knew the other person was safe, they did not reconnect.
Their lives diverged rapidly.
The lifeguard who swam away continued to find power in action. The lifeguard who stayed continued to find power in staying still. They each helped so many people yet protected themselves a little more than before.
With each passing year, the other lifeguard and the falling overboard and the rescue would take up a smaller space in their memories.
They stopped looking for one another. There was nothing else to see.
