How to See the World in Four Dimensions

As I write this, I am seeing four dimensions. It’s pretty crazy.

I’m not even on drugs, unless you count Kinder Bueno.

I suppose it is, thinking about it – but that’s not what I mean here.

Have you ever wondered why travel is so popular right now?

‘Taking a break’ is part of it, but I think the reason is more core than that.

Escapism is symptomatic of a lust for something very specific.

The fourth dimension.

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Let me explain.

Here’s the situation:

Information overload. Stimulation overdose. Less time than ever before. News on tap. Faster lives. Work hard. Grind. 10X.

It’s a good thing then, that our brains are fantastic for recording, storing, compartmentalising, labelling and categorising.

Reality contains a lot of data. We need our brains to tidy things up, and blank out the stuff we don’t need, to make it manageable.

It’s what makes us human. And it works.

The problem is, no one was given a user manual on how to use such a machine in its entirety. If there was one, we’d see the small-print footnote* that says:

‘*Please note. The brain is a sophisticated tool, and thus requires ongoing maintenance. Please ensure regular use in the fourth dimension.’

What is this heresy, you ask?

Let’s return to the popularity of travel.

It seems we need to escape, because when we experience new things, we finally get a chance to see that things have more than one meaning.

We see beyond the ‘3D.’

That’s the fourth dimension.

To come across a place; a plant; a fruit; a view; a sensation that doesn’t mean anything specific to you.

And that is enlivening. We’re giving our judging minds a rest, and extending the horizon of possibility, imagination and mystery.

It’s what our brains and bodies are yearning for more than ever.

To observe over judging.

To imagine.

To see the Iceberg reveal its giant underbelly.

To drink in the environment, rather than blocking it off with somewhere better to go.

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Chris Cornell had a song that went:

“I walk the streets of Japan till I get lost, because it doesn’t remind me of anything.”

He revealed his need to escape from the emotional charge associated with familiar labels; ‘shoulds’, and perceived failures.

He revealed a need we all have. And I believe it’s one we can fix, with more frequent visits to the fourth dimension.

Our brain is not simply a muscle for judging. We need it, but we need to exercise the part we don’t use so much. We need to read the footnote.

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The cure for this lack is not limited to travels in Japan. We can engage with a four dimensional world whenever we want.

We do it when we allow ourselves to see every day things from a fresh angle.

We do it when we challenge the beliefs that are held in concrete.

We do it when we see deeply into an object; when we meditate on something.

We are there when we ask provocative questions.

We’re knee deep in it when we approach old things in a revolutionary way.

We enter the fourth dimension when we ask ‘what if?’

When we see things right now, in full colour and free of an outline, we are there.

We are there when we go on adventures on our doorsteps.

We enter when we shift our focus from the horizontal to the vertical.

We find it when we go deeper into what’s already there, just as we can find it when we wander.

Escape is not the only way.

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If you have 12 seconds, do leave a comment. I am happy to see your comments.

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