On defining oneself

Michael Crichton climbed Mount Kilimanjaro. And says:

“…..What I learned was this: that I had defined myself as a person who didn't like heights or cold, a person who didn't like to be dirty, a person who didn't like physical exertion or discomfort. And here I had spent five days cold, dirty, and exhausted; I had lost twenty pounds; and I had had a wonderful experience.

I realized that I had defined myself too narrowly.

The experience of climbing Kilimanjaro affected me so powerfully that, for a long time afterward, if I caught myself saying, “I am not a person who likes to do that activity, eat that food, listen to that music, " I would automatically go out and do what I imagined I didn't like. Generally I found I was wrong about myself-I liked what I thought I wouldn't like. And even if I didn't like the particular experience, I learned I liked having new experiences.”

I got this in my mail recently from a friend. I had a discussion on similar lines with S.

We as people are so clannish and dismiss any new or unknown social setup. Our ability to appreciate other society and culture is limited and travel is a great way to realize how most of us are comfortable in our pre-determined world with strong likes and never ending lists of dislike which even an 6 yr old can rattle without much effort.