You Can, I Can

I admire Ash a lot. It's the prime reason why I cosplay most frequently as him. This admiration has an additional consequence: in whatever I do, I can think about what Ash does or can do, then I can think about what I do or can do. It's a motivational approach that can help to solve some of the problems that I face. I dub it as the "you can, I can" approach.

I have a case in point. The other day, I was tasked to lift a really heavy item as part of some efforts to tidy up. I was on my own then and no one else was available to help. Ash is known for his pretty heavy lifting: on two occasions, he's been depicted to lift a supposedly really heavy Pokémon, being Larvitar in one and Emboar in the other. Knowing this, I decided that if he could lift either of these two Pokémon, then I could lift the heavy item to tidy it up, and I succeeded. This knowledge was just what I needed to accomplish the task.

Granted, this approach may not apply widely. It may be hard to determine what Ash can actually do in some cases, including in the cases above, which are seemingly apparent. But it may still be possible to "take his word" in some cases. Further, there are already many things that I can do that go beyond what Ash can do, and that most likely he can't. In that case, it may be better to compare successes instead and to try to think of things on equal levels, even if they may be far off.

Perhaps it would be important to consider the views from "the other side".

[AshKetchumMode]
You know what? I think it's great that you can do what you do and I can do what I do. I think it's really great that you try to take after what I do, and see if you can do it too. I kind of wish I could do the same, looking at what you do. We should be proud of whatever we can do. And I think if it ties into Pokémon, it's really great for us! Don't you think so too?
[/AshKetchumMode]

I agree. It is thanks to Pokémon that I and Ash connected. It's an unreal thing that I can mold into my reality, and it's a real thing that is very much a part of his reality. On that note, whatever we can do great is still great for us. And if those can somehow be relatable, then that seems to put us at a greater position.

One year ago: (Continuing the) Local Ex-Raid, 4/8/2018
Two years ago: On the Road Again