Never Stop Exploring

Recently I heard an interesting principle which can be summed up in the title of this post. I must confess that I've forgotten where it was from, but I'm sure that it wasn't Pokémon to begin with. And yet because I like Pokémon, it's one that resonates with me. Pokémon and exploration seem to go hand in hand, regardless of who (people) or what (creatures) are involved. It is then a great thing to not stop exploring, however it relates to Pokémon and whatever approach is taken.

One way of not stopping to explore is to continue to look for new Pokémon opportunities. That means playing games that I haven't played or continuing to accrue merchandise, whether obtainable within my limits or otherwise. Granted, it would be a little hard nowadays for me to do the former with the main series games that span many generations past, but for other kinds of Pokémon games, I'm only happy to oblige. Even opportunities like this blog I consider new; this is so far the best way I can think of to share my personal interest in Pokémon and I hope this will lead to others later on, perhaps even outside of this blog. All of these are simply new avenues to explore.

Another way of not stopping to explore is to tinker with existing Pokémon opportunities. In games like the main series games and Shuffle, there are most likely Pokémon that have not been tested and raised in different ways; the tinkering is to see how they work (or perhaps not) with what has already been attempted. This is what VGC players are always doing with different teams in the main series, and almost the same thing occurs in Shuffle; in both cases, this would mean accomplishing what Trainers actually do in their world. Outside of games, for the more creative people, this could mean creating different forms of Pokémon art based on what already exists. Art is open to different interpretations, and Pokémon art is no exception, depending on how an artist tinkers. These are essentially the same paths, but taken in different directions.

Since Pokémon and exploration are compatible in a way, the principle that I just heard speaks to my soul as a Pokémon fan. I can do Pokémon things with what I already have, and I can also seek for new Pokémon things. The essence of both is to expand my world of appreciation for Pokémon, which is also in a way the essence of exploration. It makes me happy and proud that with Pokémon, I have a way to never stop exploring.