Redux
With slight revision, originally posted 4/26/2018 on I Write Her.
harmonizing the extremes
by channeling in graceful solutions
the art of negotiation
in a world of bad discourse
it’s a delicate dance
of intelligence and compassion
few possess the skills necessary
yet may all leaders learn those
as our world desperately
requires them now
Redux
Originally posted 4/14/2018 on I Write Her:
In my dreams, I see humankind…
with no discrimination.
treating all living with care and concern.
displaying no violence.
living reasonably and logically.
promoting peace.
In my dreams, is sadly the only place where I can find these qualities consistently.
Inspired by Reena’s Exploration Challenge #208 – A Stolen Identity & Eugenia’s Weekly Prompt – Shadows
lurking below in the shadows
under the peel of my body
realness
is sequestered
in a culture favoring the shallow
a non-wave making personality
us
being perfectly fitting puzzle pieces
molded into a society of sameness
sometimes i am ashamed to possess a stolen identity
it’s hard to make room
for understanding
when the “right” position
is so deeply entrenched
in a firmly held belief
shocking the systems
of reasonable people
empathy takes a back seat
when the “right” position
is belligerently defended
fear of change
lack of compassion
rooted and shackled in tradition
all causing a blind following
of choosing the “right” position
… may they learn how to shift when necessary
every issue has two perspectives
each perspective has reasons for its validity
validity is based on internal beliefs
beliefs are also known as values
values benefit the one
one must always try to remember we’re all connected
… and affected by opposing perspectives
It was around 2009 that social media became a part of my life. I joined reluctantly. “Who has 1000 friends they communicate with regularly? It’s just a shallow trend!” was frequently heard uttered by not only myself but others.
I’d seriously underestimated the positive as well as the negative I found there eventually.
The initial intent was to stay in touch with faraway friends and family, but my circle quickly grew to include lost friendships from high school, in-common friends I’d not ever known, and new friends who shared common interests. It was a wide variety of people from all walks of life and which had a wide range of interests that I began to include in my daily life. I can honestly say this brought me a great deal of joy. Adding Twitter and Instagram to the mix allowed me to share with even more people, most of which I’d never met, but they seemed to like what I added to their lives. Hopefully, as much as what they contributed to mine. It turned out to be a good decision to join up on all these platforms.
There were drawbacks, though. The thing which became glaringly obvious was the amount of time one can spend at the computer, phone, or tablet keeping up with all that was shiny and new to see. It may be fascinating, but oh, the time suck!!! There was much left undone in those early days that genuinely needed to get done, and where was I? At the keyboard, of course, looking at the monitor, having fun and interested, and unable to tear myself away because I wanted to read JUST ONE MORE THING! Dishes in the sink, laundry waiting for attention, a dust-filled house crying cleaning – all not considered as necessary anymore because there is something way more interesting going on in the place called the Internet. I’m ashamed to admit it, but early on, that’s what happened.
More and more, I watched social media polluted with a new form of comedy. The news feed streamed a lot of the satire sites, confusing our thinking with content, which was not true but purported to be real. Sometimes it was just that – satire, but so many times it was propaganda pushed onto the masses for an agenda. It was distracting, and in that sense, a time-waster because it required more research to determine whether it was true or not. That was frustrating to me, and many of my friends who were striving for knowledge and accuracy. And it’s discouraging to see so many others who ingested all content they were inundated with as if it were fact.
Personal details about our friend’s lives endear us to them even more with this far-reaching tool, but with anything, when used to manipulate for gain, then it’s a detriment, not beneficial. And so many can’t see it as it’s happening. Drama after drama plays out online, and tugs at heartstrings. The generosity pours out, but sometimes the people are just pawns. It’s sad to see, and devastating to those who succumbed to the deception. Social media has the potential for harm and teaches us to be warier and to be less trusting because of it.
Social media can allow us to feel more anonymous and thereby more confident in the presentation of ourselves to our audience. But some choose to remain anonymous just for the sake of being bold, extremely deprecating, and even insulting to others. It’s like social media has given them the super-power of assholey-ness, and they have a worldwide audience. I’ve talked to many who have had encounters that have left them feeling demoralized, marginalized, angered, and humiliated at times.
I also think having this tool to be more “social” also impacts us more negatively. Information gets to us quicker, but it is more devastating when our constructed social network or our personal ‘community’ is injured more dramatically than ever before. It can escalate or dial-up the drama at a much faster pace, and the negative can ratchet up to unheard-of levels quicker than ever before. The misery of others is the fodder in our everyday news cycle, where previously, it may have taken weeks, months, or not at all to hear the gossip. Now, it’s a laid out on our Newsfeeds. And what a nasty pile-on it can become.
Stepping back, when I evaluate it realistically, social media is just the extended version of real life. All of the things I mentioned above do occur in person to person contact. The only difference is it happens on a much grander scale in the online world. There are more people involved, more interactions, more hype, more distraction, and more drama. It’s helped make our community bigger but in a much different way than we thought it would. Social media is representing life on a larger scale, where it’s become louder and more visible.
Thankfully, we will encounter good individuals in our electronic travels, but people being people, some of them using these platforms will be twat-waffles. Unfortunately, that group will dim the positive impact social media can have on our world.
But isn’t that always the way?
sleeping in comfort
nightmares invade my slumber
the inequity
feeling guilt and shame
always privilege winning
when will justice come
they need love and food
being fair, doing right things
society heals
The value of the past eludes us.
The same mistakes on repeat.
Reflection would serve us well.
Empathy would too.
Oh, realize the worth of our tragic and harsh history!
Please only go forward, not back.
I worry for my children and future generations.
Sobbing, losing hope with each act of terror.
As I watch this world becoming one of hate and destruction,
I feel defeated.
Filled with sadness,
I still love.
But is it enough?
We see each other.
Though we don’t know beyond what stands before us.
The reflection is a fairy tale; the image, a mask of well-being.
Or it’s a nightmare played out while awake.
More likely, people pass by being barely noticeable.
Understand that the substance of lives are not predicted in the first glance.
Let’s take the time to watch as the bios unfold slowly.
Look inside.
And find the essential being within.
It starts with being born. There isn’t a choice in the matter. I certainly played no part in being here. Did you?
Had I been asked, I may have said, “No, thank you.”
We come into the world under the control of whatever mechanism which put us here. Just by instinct and choice, we continue to want to experience life. Then we are bound by the rules of those who raise us. Even when we graduate from the family into adulthood, our subsequent years usher us into the next line of restrictions on our freedom.
“These are paths to be taken!” says our society! It tends to dispense authoritative advice to the youth as they are just emerging into their own legally. School, good job, marriage, children – continue the cycle. It’s as if because members of society did it, that is the automatic direction everyone should take. I hope I wasn’t too bossy with my children.
Should individuals choose a different path, their opinion to be unique still won’t shut down those opposing viewpoints. Assimilate! Don’t stand out! Don’t go against our way of how things have always been done! When did we as a society decide that people being or doing life differently meant it was a problem? Probably since forever.
In the work world, we see employers dictate exactly how to fit into the square box called the company. It’s called compliance, and understandably so, one does need to get paid to continue this experience called life. Food, water, and shelter are a requirement to sustain. But oh how it dulls the individual! I’ve heard it said that’s why it’s called work and not fun.
Raising our children (should we decide to have them) provides us with even more ways we must adhere to other’s expectations, whether they be our own family, friends or public opinion. It seems everyone has a view on that. “Do this, don’t do that!”
Of course, compliance with the law of the land to live civilly in our community, state, country, or the world seems a smart choice. It’s being able to live in harmony with the others who also had no say in being born. Does that define being free though – adherence to the expectations of others?
I don’t think so.
If we are to have the right and the power to be exactly who we want to be without any pushback, it will require a world absent of people who disagree with how individuals wish to act, declare, or display themselves to this world.
This world would be empty. And lonely.
No different than so many people feel right now where we have a society filled with people which do disagree with individuals all the time.
Neither world is a pleasant experience for those who yearn to feel unobstructed.
I don’t think we can ever feel 100% free.
Life is a continual series of compromises to achieve some level of comfort in a life which we did not choose.
I Write Her 
