Yesterday my brain felt all foggy – like trying to see through muddy water – so I grabbed my coffee and figured I'd tackle that "I think, therefore I am" thing. Descartes, right? Sounded fancy, but honestly, kinda intimidating. Here's exactly how my morning went down.
Just Trying to Understand the Dang Phrase
First, I just sat there repeating it to myself: Cogito, ergo sum. Feels like a tongue twister! "I think, therefore I am." Okay, simple English. But what does it really mean? I started overthinking it big time. Does my dog thinking mean he definitely exists too? That felt slippery. So I did what anyone would do – I grabbed a cheap notebook and started scribbling.
My Dumb Little Thought Experiment
The internet says Descartes was doubting everything. Like, really doubting. So I tried it. Sitting in my creaky old chair, I pretended maybe:
- My coffee mug was just an illusion.
- The traffic noise outside? Probably fake.
- My comfy socks? Maybe not even there!
Felt kinda silly, but here's the kicker: even while doubting everything, there was always this little voice in my head doing the doubting. Me. That voice, that thinking thing – it had to be real, right? Because if it wasn't real, who was doing all this doubting? Fake sock-doubter? Nope.
Hitting the Wall & the Click
That's where I got stuck for like half an hour. Just circling: "Thinking proves the thinker exists. But how? Why?" My notebook looked like a spider had a panic attack on it. Then, sipping cold coffee, it clicked – not like a giant lightbulb, more like a dim flashlight flickering on.
- It’s not about what you think (dreams, illusions, fake socks).
- It’s that the act of thinking itself is the proof.
- Even a wrong thought? Yep. Still requires a 'you' doing the thinking.
Even doubting my own existence proved I existed to have that doubt. Mind slightly blown. It wasn't proving I had a body, or my coffee was real – just that something conscious was experiencing all this junk.
So, Did It Actually Help?
Did I suddenly become Descartes? Heck no. But that foggy brain feeling? Yeah, it cleared up a bit. Focusing on that core idea – that my own awareness, my own thoughts, are the one thing I absolutely can't doubt away – felt weirdly grounding. Less like solving a puzzle, more like tripping over a rock and realizing the ground beneath my feet was actually there. Solid. Real enough to stub my toe on, even if it's just a thinking toe. This mind stuff is exhausting!
