Kuato told Quaid to "Open your mind" and it makes sense because most often that sort of thing is required in order to not only accept the truth, but even see it in the first place. A lot of people say "I'll believe it when I see it", but it's actually just the opposite. You'll see it when you believe it. Everyone has heard the stories about how the natives couldn't see the incoming ships 500 years ago because up until that point they had no idea such a thing could exist. Well the same is true today, although maybe not as overt as not being able to comprehend that there is a clipper ship headed for the shore. Instead there are probably ideas that people cannot see because they simply do not believe in them. It even happens in smaller instances where you realize something for the first time and you wonder how you never knew that before. And it wasn't like you discovered something mysterious or even new, but it had escaped your perception up until that point. The mind often sees what it wants to see.
I wonder if OCD and PTSD are essentially the same thing. It's really the mind's way of not being able to let go of something. In some strange way it's actually attempting to protect the brain from harm. The problem with both is that a person is essentially locked into a thought pattern that prevents them from moving forward. Those are just two of the more apparent instances of the mind being unable to process something and instead just falls back into a "comfort zone". I've seen people dwell on things well beyond the point of reason. I always ask why they can't simply let it go and move on? When you're outside of the situation it's always easier said than done.
Still think about how you think. Do you worry excessively about something? Do you get angry about little things? Do things have to be a certain way or you're just not happy? Those types of thoughts aren't always bad or wrong, but a person has to ask themselves if that kind of thinking helps. Does it help to worry about something or in some strange way is it just comfortable to worry about it because that's what you've always done? It may not feel comfortable in the traditional sense, but you may have been doing it for so long that it's second nature to immediately see a problem and just start worrying about it. Why not let go of it?
Believe me I'm not saying changing this type of thought process is easy and it may not even be possible without some outside help, be it therapy or prescription medication. You have to first be aware of it before you can do anything about it. Most people (myself included) have probably said "That's just how I am" or "I've always thought that way". That's coming very close to a cop out. It's essentially implying that you are incapable of change. It's more likely that you aren't so much incapable of change as you are unwilling to change. They say you can't teach an old dog new tricks, but that's just not true. The only thing stopping you from different behavior is your belief that you can't change. Well that and a lifetime of neural pathways being hard wired in such a way that you'll be undergoing actual physical changes within your brain. It comes down to believing that you control your thoughts and it's not all just chemical secretions dictating your every action. Your mind is one of the most complex things we've ever known and we're just beginning to grasp the idea that our thoughts have power, not just over ourselves, but with the external world.
I have this thing where it seems like the opposite of what I think is the most likely to happen. Example: It's been awhile since I've gotten into an argument with a friend. Or I never feel lonely these days. For some reason thoughts like that tend to come just before problems. I'm not exactly sure if A) it's a type of early warning system my brain has somehow managed to come up with. Man it's been awhile since I've been in a fight with a friend. Alarm! You will be entering into a fight in the very near future. Or B) if having those thoughts causes me to focus on it and in a sense create my own reality. It's like driving down the road and all you can think about is how much you don't want to drive into a sign post. Even though you're telling yourself that you don't want to do it, your mind is fixated on it and there's a good chance that you will create the very situation you were hoping to avoid.
It could be written off as coincidence. What was going to happen was already set in motion whether you thought about it or not. It's been proven in science that observing something alters its behavior. The definition of observation could be interpreted in a number of ways, which could go beyond just visually inspecting something. It could also include mentally focusing on it. If that's the case then even thinking about a situation could potentially alter its outcome. Imagine what reality would be like if we understood just how powerful our minds are and were able to control our thoughts in a way that we create the world around us. Think about that.
