Sometimes, to understand something, it’s necessary to distance oneself from it. Take a vacation, both in the literal and metaphorical sense. For example, since I had left Poland for Japan, I gained a new appreciation for my nation’s heritage. Admittedly, moving to another country is an extreme example, but the principle applies to a number of things, good and bad. To realize you have an addiction, you have to try to quit. To make a decision, sometimes you need to forget about it. To really appreciate your friends and family, you have to miss them. And we can taste food most discriminately when hungry, treasure each coin when lacking money and sleep best when tired. Human nature is irrational like that.
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