As I was walking past our little “cardboard recycling station” in my dorm, a box of Honey Nut Cheerios caught my eye. Mind you, I’m much more partial to Lucky Charms and Honey Bunches of Oats as a general rule … but the back of this Cheerio’s box was so compelling that I ripped it off so I could think about it later.
Emblazoned boldly across the top of the box, next the ubiquitous smiling bee, are the words: “Take the Non-Challenge!” It gives such useful tips as:
- Walking 5 miles is a challenge. Getting 5 miles in while shopping doorbuster sales is a non-challenge.
- Giving up your favorite sweets is a challenge. Splitting a dessert with your sweetheart is a non-challenge.
- Finding 30 minutes to exercise is a challenge. Making time to exercise while watching a sit-com is a non-challenge.
- Holding off a serious case of the munchies is a challenge. Enjoying Honey Nut Cheerios as a delicious and healthy snack is a non-challenge.
- Losing that last 5 pounds is a challenge. Taking the first step by using the stairs today is a non-challenge.
I agree with the general sentiment expressed here. Especially in the realm of maintaining some degree of physical fitness, every little bit counts. Yet, this cereal box seems to be reflective of a general trend that is not positive in our society. There is a general philosophy that “something is better than nothing.” While this truism can help to answer a select set of specific circumstances, it does not bear universal application to our lives. Questions of effort, excellence, consistency, and completeness cannot be answered with a “just do as much as you can” mentality.
It doesn’t matter whether or not you believe in culture wars – either between different factions in the United States or between different cultures altogether. I’m concerned here with an individual. If someone is taught to take the easy way out of every situation, to pursue a non-challenge rather than the more difficult option, there is a distinct penchant for problems. It isn’t even the lack of fulfillment or the waste of time. There is something in us that strives for the epic.
We, individually and as a culture, respond to stories of fights. We like stories of the underdog striving against all odds to succeed – of good being a victor over evil. I would certainly call this a revealing, if not positive, characteristic … but our culture does not develop it in the right way.
Rather than seeing an epic tale and responding to it by being inspired to commit deeds of personal, and perhaps more human and situational, heroism and effort … there is a tendency to appreciate it and nothing more. We love these stories of challenge, and even enshrine them in books, music, and movies. It is not enough to appreciate the challenges of others in a vicarious sort of way.
I guess what I’m driving at here is that every single one of us should be challenged. Out of that challenge there is growth and excellence. Trying to pass through life piecemeal through “nonchallenges” and vicarious experiences is not only lazy … it’s a cop-out.
Agreed. For myself, as I am still learning how to “think” (haha) I realize that some of my past experiences I was able to skip the challenging parts because some one else did it for me. I am enjoying, although it can be stressful, learning how to do those challenging bits on my own, and I love it :) But, I will have to disagree, Reeses Pieces cereal and/or honey nut cheerios beat lucky charms :)