In the presence of what I see as my mother's over-cautiousness, I have to work to maintain my more typical prudence. This dynamic leads to a division of labor concerning the polarity of caution and daring. His tendency toward procrastination may have developed in reaction to my tighter relationship with my inner Taskmaster. When people divide on an issue, unless they find a resolution, they tend to push each other further out toward the opposite ends of the spectrum. Each end represents a value that is legitimate, but that also must be balanced against another value.
Polarization is one way the system preserves balance, but it is an unstable and conflictual balance.
Far better if the actors in the system, instead of dividing into mirror-image opposites of one another, could achieve the healthier balance of integration. But such integration is difficult. In the absence of wisdom, people are compelled to struggle in their folly. Each side, wedded to its half-truth, sees the other as the problem. But the real truth lies not between but above the extremes.