Handling Things in anticlimatic

It’s interesting, the things we learn about ourselves and the world that we didn’t know we didn’t know. One of those things, for me, was just how easy it is to affect the physical world around us- and the responsibility that comes with that knowledge and ability.

Up to that point, navigating my body through life felt more like a classic video game- where no matter what you throw at that wooden fence or background image, nothing you do can damage it. Your only options are to just follow the tracks and rules that someone else placed for you, and try to look on the bright side of whatever comes to you in that way.

It was somewhere around the time that I accidentally twisted a steel pipe in half with almost no effort (just a little bit of leverage) that I learned the video game programming of the universe was more “Minecraft” and less “Mario Brothers.” The only rules are the rules of physics- and while ridgid, they allow for tremendous influence over world around us- to a degree almost unimaginable, when knowledge pairs with control.

Most of the knowledge and muscle memory that people pay me for now lies in torque points. Those very specific points of applied force where just enough is used to achieve a goal, but not so much that the goal is destroyed; just enough to prevent it from ever leaking, but not so much that it cracks in half.

But applying correct torque is only half of the equation- equally important is “counter torque,” or the force you exert against yourself, on behalf of whatever the object is attached to, to prevent collateral damage.

For example- if there is a bolt that is rusted into place on a part, but that part is attached to other parts in a fragile way that can’t be disturbed, you need to hold that part steady somehow while you apply the force needed to break it loose. The best way to do this, is to use similar lengths of leverage and pinch them together- like a cheap nut cracker. This allows you to apply tremendous force, without disturbing the spatial placement of the object: controlled, precise destruction.

From there it’s just a matter of learning all the materials of life, what works on them and what doesn’t. You can shape wood with metal, but not metal with wood. You can shape metal with stone, but you can’t shape stone with metal. And with every cut, burn, scratch, or gouge, you learn the most important thing there is:

Although the human body is the apex of worldly destruction, it is also the softest and most vulnerable material the world uses. It makes particle board feel like titanium in comparison, and outside of surgery it’s never something anyone should seek to damage.

Without this complete picture of the physical nature of the world, its limits, and the physical nature and limits of human (or animal) bodies, it’s easy I think to confuse a number of things. People, especially when they get in their feelings, can forget that a human being is nothing like a stone or a block of wood. We forget that the amount of force we can throw at the world, especially if that force wields leverage, can be immense. And we forget to consider counter torque in favor of just throwing haymakers in pursuit of a single goal with no regard for the direct collateral damage caused.

There is a type of sadistic violence where an individual can know exactly what they are doing, and do it effectively and intentionally- but more often it feels like just a reckless misunderstanding of physics and self control. You don’t even know how to correctly handle a stone, yet you’re pretending a person is one, and raging against it. People underestimate their own strength, and overestimate the strength of others, when they let emotions cause them to lash out in this way I feel.

The “gentle giant” is the archetype of this wisdom. I believe in keeping my hands to myself at all times now, but if I do have to handle people- either to help them, or express intimacy with someone I love- I have to focus on the torque points. Enough force to scoop them up, or pull them out of the way quickly- but not so much that it hurts. Enough force to squeeze their hair and grip their neck- but not so much that it hurts.

How to handle fragile things is the first responsibility an empirical knowledge of physics yields- but it comes with another one that is even more difficult. It’s not enough to have this kind of power and just not-hurt things. You also have to use it, in whatever means available, to prevent others from hurting things. Either through their own ignorance, or direct malice. Maybe you don’t go full vigilante, but you don’t let the bystander effect hold you back either. See something say something. Get involved. You’re stronger than you realize.