Out-of-sync

Imagine living in a house where you have to pay the bills for a service that you have never used. The previous tenants used it and you are stuck with the bills. The only reason you still pay them is because they called you and told you, "Pay." And if you do not listen to them, bad things will happen. Rough-looking-people will come home and powder you to minuscule pieces. Fans will stop working, water will stop running. So you just pay the bills.

This is how we live. Functions exist, repercussions are clear. But of course the previous tenants have long moved out - there is no one in the house anymore except you and your life and the bills. There is no emotion. You don't even know what you are paying for. When you ask they say, "He wanted more air. His lungs were hungry."

These are the dynamics of "vestigial desire."