Quote Originally Posted by MistressNomad View Post
I think this is true of any dangerous tool that humans learn to use.

So much of that has been removed from society. We are trying to make everything safer and safer, surrounding ourselves in a bubble.

When I took up fencing, I didn't just learn how to stick people with a long pointy object. I didn't even just learn the psychology of a dual.

I also learned about the gravity of holding a weapon. And that taught me a lot about who I am as a person. I once (and only once) entered a dual with anger in my head and in my heart. I lunged so viciously that I broke my blade on the chest of my opponent, and in the process sliced open my hand as his blade flew past me.

It wasn't merely the fact that I injured myself pretty badly that kept me from doing that again. It was the idea that I had quite nearly seriously injured someone I cared about and that I had not taken the gravity of my weapon seriously. In the process I had endangered everyone around me, including myself.

I learned a lot about my own tendency towards impatience and emotionality. These things become clear when you are using a dangerous tool. It teaches you who you really are - the good and the bad.

I'm still a newbie with a straight razor, but even in my single failed attempt thus far I have learned something. I've learned that great tools must be treated delicately, and that my lack of respect for my tool was what lead me to fail.

One of the good aspects about me, evident in both my fencing and my experience so far with straights, in my persistence. But it does little good if I am not respecting my dangerous tools, respecting myself, and being a patient and thoughtful person.

Living in a bubble prevents us from improving ourselves. Perhaps that fact that SRP is such an incredibly kind and thoughtful place stands as a testament to the value of venturing outside that bubble.
Hmmm, interesting. I also fence. I remember for a final, I had to fence my instructor. At the conclusion, he said "Let me tell you something about yourself. You are the best fencer in the class, but you won't retreat. You will stand your ground till you die. Learn to retreat. It is a tactical move and you should use it".

Sounds a lot like shaving till I get the best shave at the cost of my flesh.