Doughnuts and Humans Being

I was standing in a queue at a doughnut shop in London’s Soho.

Fourteen varieties of deep-fried goodness were on offer. Each customer left with doughnuts in a box, bag, or wrapped in a napkin for immediate consumption. With each decision of which doughnut(s) to select, a story was being told—some out loud and some privately.

“Should I get one doughnut or two, or is it better to go for a dozen?”

“I wonder if the calorie and fat count is similar from doughnut to doughnut.”

“Oh, the fruit-filled doughnut must be healthier (not true).”

A father with his young daughter discussed what her mom and younger brother might like and how the chocolate-filled doughnut would definitely cause the “zoomies.” – I assumed this meant the sugar would go to the youngster’s head. At that point, I recall the scenes of my children running with reckless abandon after the consumption of mass quantities of sugar.

Then, a young, slender man in a perfectly fitted Savile Row suit ordered a plain doughnut—a golden yellow fried cake in the shape of a ring—no decorations, no filling.

If everyone in the doughnut shop acted exclusively as a human being

(a member of a species), with the solitary intent to survive, not thrive, the choices at this doughnut shop would have been limited to that plain golden ring. Humanity would never stand for that, would it?

As conscious beings with agency and emotions, we navigate the world in pursuit of value, anticipating our future needs. We seek experiences that fulfill our desires, ignite our curiosity, and ease our fears, all hoping to realize our full potential—and, perhaps, become better at being human.

THE DOUGHNUT

A doughnut is a fried cake shaped as a ring.

A doughnut can be glazed or coated in sugar.

A doughnut can be baked.

A doughnut can be yeast-based.

A doughnut can be made from choux.

A doughnut can be filled with fruit or cream.

A doughnut can be topped with nuts, sprinkles, candy, cookies, and ironically, doughnuts.

A doughnut can be twisted.

A doughnut can be called a cruller – braided, ringed, or straight.

A doughnut can be shaped as a ball.

A doughnut can be purchased in a box where it is mass-produced.

A doughnut can be purchased where it is baked fresh every day.

A doughnut can be eaten on the run, in a place where you dunk it, or enjoyed slowly in a café in New Orleans, served by a waiter wearing a bow tie and paper hat.

These are the things that make a doughnut a doughnut.

Human beings eat doughnuts.

Humans being experience doughnuts.