One has to be selfish and self-absorbed to a certain extent in order to live in peace and remain sane enough to keep going in life. Otherwise we get so caught up with the inevitable sad things in the world and we fail to live our lives independently of those things, as we must since those sad things cannot really be helped, not solely by us anyway, and not completely.
Category Archives: Philosophy
Calm after the storm
0Have you noticed the difference between peoples’ reactions to things in the heat of the moment and then afterward as they reflect on what they were so anxious about previously? It is an interesting phenomenon…to see people so worked up over something and then the calmness that comes after – the calm after the storm. Some might wonder how they could have acted in such a way during the moment or had such an intense reaction. I think people are often surprised when they step outside of themselves and observe their actions, and I think this is such a case. It is kind of like an out-of-body experience when one steps back and observes themselves – was that really me?
Human touch
0Human touch is very important in life, and one need only go some time without it to realize this. Not only do we notice it’s effects when we don’t have it, its importance has been proven scientifically based on children who have not been touched or had much interaction with people at all. Children who do not have contact with a parent or caregiver who offer them their touch have substantial developmental and social problems. But human touch is important throughout one’s life as one gets older as well. Think about those who spend their lives alone without a partner or a family to speak of. I do not have personal experience with this, so I can only imagine how they must feel. I have been lonely though, and I think the lack of human touch would elicit a similar feeling to that of being lonely because it is essentially the same thing, even if someone who is alone does not feel lonely. This brings up another question – is it possible to be alone for a lifetime and not feel lonely? I really cannot say for sure, but I imagine not. I appreciate the human touch that I come into contact with, knowing that not everyone is lucky enough to have it or know what it feels like.
Even when we’re ok, we’re not
1Just because we may think of things in a certain way does not mean that that is the way they are. We often skew our perception of certain things that might be sad into a positive perspective to avoid feeling down about them. But this does not change the way things actually are. Conversely, we may think of things that are perfectly ok in the world in a negative way when really they are not. So how can we know if how we think of things is as they are, or if they have an entirely separate identity independent of our thoughts of them? I think it is rather difficult to truly know the distinction, and sometimes the difference can become blurred. So, even when we think we’re ok and things in the world are ok, they may very well not be.
Events
0What makes certain events stand out more than others and makes them more significant and lasting than others? It seems there are some events that hold more weight than others for whatever reason, either because they are inherently more important or because we value them more. Certain events like births, deaths, marriages, divorces, birthdays, anniversaries, graduations, big exams, etc. stand out in our mind as more important perhaps because we found them particularly joyous or sad, or as big achievements. It is important to have these kinds of substantial events to remember and reflect on when our lives seem mundane, to remind ourselves that we have had good (and bad) experiences in life that make living worthwhile and not so dreary.
Affects
0It is interesting how things, occurrences, experiences have an effect on us that is beyond our control. Something bad happens to us and it consequently has a negative effect on us that we can’t seem to change for the better no matter how hard we try. But when pleasant things happen to us or when we witness pleasant things, they can have a very positive effect on us that leaves a lasting impression. I find this interesting because it is nothing that we bring about ourselves; it is something external that is beyond our control and all we can do is accept it for what it is, and either enjoy it if it is a good effect or suffer from it if it is a bad effect.
Ceremonies
0How much of what we do in life is ceremonious and how much of it is real? There are certain things we do that seem to be very ceremonious, such as holidays, special occasions like birthdays and anniversaries, etc. So how many of these celebrations are ceremonious just for the sake of celebrating an occasion that comes around every year so one is forced to celebrate it, and how much do we genuinely enjoy the celebrations and celebrate them authentically? It seems there are several occasions in life where we go through the motions ceremoniously, but don’t actually live in the moment for the sake of the experience, but rather for the ceremony and appearance of it.
In the public
0Doing things in public and sharing in things with others, such as going to movies, plays, concerts, lectures, etc., is so much better than doing them by yourself because instead of enjoying these things solitarily you can enjoy them together. You can observe others’ reactions to things, which might influence your own reaction, which I suppose can be either good or bad. But there does seem to be something of value in sharing moments and experiences with others rather than just by oneself.
The other thing of value about going out into the public is observing others and realizing the connection between yourself and people and things around you. Something as simple as going to a coffee shop and seeing familiar faces that you often see there and observing them each time you see them can help construct a little world in which you live and experience the familiar – perhaps these people were once strangers, but by becoming familiar they become part of your life.
Wants
0How do we know what we really want? How do we know that our lives and what we have in our lives is what we want? What if it is just a world that we have created for ourselves, and perhaps it was what we wanted at one point, or for a while, but ceases to be what we want? And how do we come to the realization that our current state is almost like a fictitious state and not our real life? But then how do we know what our real life is or how our real life might come about? Is it something that we have to create or does it come together on its own?
I think sometimes we come to a point when we step outside of ourselves and evaluate our lives – either voluntarily or because of some external cause that forces us to do so. These evaluations can be scary and even painful because they require us to be very honest with ourselves about what we want for our life. This is a difficult thing to do and I think sometimes we avoid it and simply continue on as before just because we don’t want to face it. But this does not lead to any kind of profound happiness, but rather merely a comfortable state in which we do not delve deeper into ourselves.
What is in the minds of others?
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Do you ever wonder what is inside other peoples’ heads? And what you would learn if you could have access to their thoughts – not only their thoughts, but also their perceptions and feelings of things? This seems like a rather obvious thought, but it occurred to me when I saw the new movie, Lincoln. Firstly, Daniel Day Lewis’ performance in the film is extraordinary, which is perhaps why this notion dawned on me during the movie. But what if we could gain insight into what others were thinking? Our lives and our thoughts seem to be so self-centered that sometimes we forget that other people have thoughts, perceptions, and feelings different from our own. And I just think it would be so interesting if we could get a little peek at what those thoughts are…
gooollysandra 