At the tip of the roller coaster, ready to drop, I accepted what was going to happen next, and embraced the moment to come. It was after experiencing the daunting drops of Six Flag’s roller coasters a few weekends ago that I began to ponder on the idea of Amor Fati, the ability to accept and embrace circumstances. 

Interpretations & Perspective

It is a common idea in hermeneutics that our past experiences and emotions build our perspective of text and an idea.

That essentially our perspective of an idea is filtered by our past experiences, causing us to perceive the idea in an altered way.

We can apply this phenomena with how we perceive or interpret our situations and circumstances.

Where we do not see the truth of a circumstance or situation, but rather a personally filtered truth of a circumstance or situation; a truth conformed to our emotions and past experiences.

It is with this false interpretation that we carry of a circumstance or situation (which is filtered by our past experiences and emotions), that we make assumptions, misconceptions, and ultimately lose the truth of the circumstance.

To illustrate this point, I want to explore a common theme in novels that I always see, and always fascinated me. 

In the book House Arrest by K.A. Holt, Timothy, a boy, is put into house arrest for stealing a person's wallet. Now, we automatically interpret this situation as justice served for a greedy delinquent’s wickedness. 

However, what if I were to tell you that Timothy stole that wallet for the sole purpose of curing his very sick brother. 

Of course does this justify stealing, no, but it makes us feel a bit more sympathetic towards Timothy, changing our perspective or what we believe to be the reality of the whole circumstance. 

For, we no longer see a greedy delinquent disrupting other people's lives, but rather a devoted boy, trying his hardest to save his brother. 

This example not only shows us how our interpretations and reality of a circumstance can completely change, but it also shows us how we tend to never look at the other side of a circumstance; how we never really consider other possibilities; ultimately, how we conform to our interpretations as the true reality.

This leads me into one of my favorite quotes by Marcus Aurelius in the meditations (Book 4: 7), “Choose not to be harmed—and you won’t be harmed. Don’t feel harmed—and you haven’t been.” 

I love what Marcus Aurelius says here, and I will break up what he means into two parts: 

First, Aurelius is saying our circumstances do not affect us, but rather the interpretation we have of the circumstance that does. 

Going back to the example with House Arrest, the circumstance of Timothy before we got any

context about his true motive, affected us negatively, making some of us perhaps feel angry, disappointed, or even prideful in our righteousness. Hence why we automatically made negative assumptions.

However, once we knew the true motive of Timothy, the circumstance affected us positively, making us feel happy, hopeful, or considerate. 

This right here shows us how our interpretations determine how we are affected. 

To further demonstrate this, Marcus Auerlius also says in the meditations (Book 5: 16), “The things you think about determine the quality of your mind, Your soul takes on the color of your thoughts” 

Here Marcus Auelius is telling us how our own thoughts (interpretations), determine our soul (the way we feel).

The second part as to what Aurelius was saying is that since our interpretations determine how we are affected, if we have control over our interpretations - which we do - then we have control of how we are affected.

It is this relationship between our interpretations and the way we feel, that it becomes even more important to have control over our interpretations. Hence, where Amor Fati comes in. 

Amor Fati

Now, Amor Fati is a phrase that directly translates to Love of Fate. Love of fate is exactly how it sounds: loving what life brings. 

But this goes deeper, as Amor Fati is the ability to humble oneself and understand that what is happening or has happened by nature is out of your control; that you have no control over what you can not control. 

This idea may seem obvious, however, I find that though we may understand this, we tend to complain, or to wish that this could happen or that can happen. However, one question I must ask is (to you and myself): if you can't control it, then why bother complaining? 

Many would say they complain to express their pain and discomfort, which is valid; however, why bother with pain? 

As I have stated above, it is up to us, in our interpretations, to be affected negatively or positively, so why interpret pain, why be affected by your own interpretation of pain.  

Why bother with pain when you are able to embrace the situation, and instead of feeling discomfort, you can feel comfort?

Understanding this foundation of Amor Fati, I now want to go back to my experience on the roller coaster. 

On the drop of those roller coasters, I heard people screaming, scrambling in their seats, many already closing their eyes, and others with fearful facial expressions. 

I feared the drop to come; my stomach already felt quite nauseous, and my mind knew that in just a few seconds, I would experience the quickest rush of adrenaline I would ever feel. 

However, I did something weird. I told myself to embrace it, to embrace the pain of my stomach, and the pain to come on the drop. To close my eyes and squeeze my fists on the handles, and just go with it. 

So it was here, in this state, literally as vivid as a movie - when the main character has a moment where everything is silent, and everything ceases - that I felt the essence of Amor Fati.

Here, I simply accepted what it was to come, I could not scream to stop, nor unbuckle and leave. I was bound, and had to face what was coming. 

My mind knew this, and instead of being scared, or fearing the drop, I accepted my fate, and it was here where I realized that I came to the park, that I came on to this ride not to feel negative in discomfort, but to have fun in discomfort.

Thus, I found myself in that moment, embracing the adrenaline, embracing the pain in the stomach, and most importantly, embracing the drop, enjoying every second of it, as in my mind, I had no other choice but to. 

This is the underlying message that I want to communicate, that we should not waste our time and the moments we have with negative interpretations, but instead accepting whatever comes, and embracing it, making it something greater. 

This of course does not only apply for roller coasters, but for all situations in life. 

Thus, remember always to humble oneself, accept the circumstance, and interpret only the positive aspects of the circumstance. 

For, it is this way that we enjoy life, instead of despising every second of it; how we enjoy the roller coaster, instead of despising every second of it. 

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The key highlight: “‘Choose not to be harmed—and you won’t be harmed. Don’t feel harmed—and you haven’t been’ (Meditations Book 4: 7)”

Creator: Christian Pereira

Find me at @pereira_rants on TikTok and @Pereira_rants on Instagram

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