Starship Analogy: Acceptance By A Skeptical Introvert

Yesterday I attended a sold out concert in an amphitheater. While I generally enjoyed myself, the experience made me not only accept that I am an introvert, but it inspired what I think is an analogy that may help non-introverts, aka extroverts, understand what its like to be introverted. Or should I say capital I Introverted?

I call it the Starship Analogy, based on how deflector shields are typically described in science fiction. 

I'll explain it a bit later. First, let's talk about the whole Introvert thing.

I've been reluctant to accept the whole Introvert/Extrovert thing, mostly because it has been hard for me to identify myself. Of course some people are more outgoing, some more reserved, but is there really a different energy usage and transfer? As you will see, I have come around to yes.

I am introverted, but never considered myself an Introvert.Every personality test says I am, yet I do enjoy being social. But, I've never been a fan of being around a lot of people. Festivals and fairs and the like have never excited me other than being there with friends - everyone else I could do without. I thought it was always just that, well, I didn't like crowds, or the chances of types of people being in said crowds. I liked 'my people' and felt more comfortable around them. As long as I am surrounded by a number of my people, I can navigate through a larger event. But very easily, if I am not in control of my surroundings and actions, I can become overwhelmed.

You see where this is going right? I would explain exactly what the definition of an Introvert is without seeing that was what it was.

So, as I sat at this concert, though I enjoyed the performance and I was with my wife who buffered me from some, I felt more and more drained being around all the people. As I sat there, in my own thoughts to attempt to keep annoyances at bay, a thought came to me:

I am a starship. 

Wait, what? What does that mean?

I am a starship. My body is the ship. I have a reactor for energy, it comes from me, from within. That reactor powers a shield that protects me. There is an engineering area that manages the shield, constantly redirecting the shields to deflect harmful effects. Each time the shields are redirected, it uses up energy. At some point the ship, me, becomes drained and I have to recharge. But there is no charging device. You have to shut systems down and it will recharge itself. 

But what are these 'attacks' or harmful effects on the shield? Anything from another human, really. We pick up on negative energies around us. And it doesn't have to be a personal attack, although those are even more impactful. People arguing a few rows away. People disrupting your experience by constantly going back and forth. Your partner getting upset, not even at you. Someone doing something wrong, as in malicious, or just poorly. It may sound silly, but just bad vibes. Even the anticipation that someone is going to do something negative can set off a defensive response and use up energy planning for it to happen.

So, how is this different than an Extrovert? Well, I can only guess at what the other is like. I would think that an extrovert is more like a solar powered device, and the people around them, the excitement, the emotions, are like the sun that charges them up.

If you are an Introvert, does this compute? Do you ? If you are an extrovert, does this help you understand your Introvert friends?