I'm sure that many people can see there is something really wrong going on in this world. It seems to me to be getting crazier every day!
There are many articles and headlines these days, which indicate that more and more people are seeking help with mental issues, especially depression. The reason, cited most frequently, appears to relate it to the everyday stress of living and trying to get by. And I get that, absolutely.
The pressures put on everybody is enormous. In no particular order:
- have to be successful financially
- have to look good
- have to be better than others
- have to have control
- have to be a great father / mother / son/ daughter / husband / wife / partner / employee / employer / etc.
- have to have more friends
- have to have more likes
- have to be cleverer
- etc., etc., etc.
And not just with specific people, but all the time. You have to be the cool one, whatever the circumstances.
The big problem is: the definitions of all the above vary depending on the situation you are in and who else is there. Now deferential, now assertive,
A simple example: back in the 60s, the people who stayed in posh hotels wore suits and dresses. Suddenly people started to stay, who came dressed in jeans and skirts and expected to experience the flunkey treatment. For the flunkeys (hotel staff) big change: those who had previously been tossed out and never allowed in, might now be rich and famous! Big stress, trying to apply the rules in new circumstances; who to toss out and who to welcome!
And such changes are coming into everybody's lives every day, now. Many of them big changes. For example, there were some powerful storms here recently, and in one place, people were starting the day with their house no longer there. Big change! But "smaller" changes can have a devastating effect on individuals, such as mobbing or any kind of change and unkindness. Look at an asylum seeker, who has escaped a truly difficult situation, gone through unspeakable experiences and arrived, say, here. What welcomes them is not relief, but loss of everything, locked up in a centre, not allowed to do anything or earn anything, while waiting - sometimes years - for a decision if they can stay or not. Often they are just shoved around further from country to country with similar rules.
No wonder we get depressed and find we can't get the balance right. Wasn't there the promise of a bright future when we were children? What happened?
On top of this, the insanity is exploited and provides even more distance from reality. As the Romans said: give them bread and games to keep them from revolting. And that’s what we have, in the form of fast-food, leading to an obesity crisis in the west and creeping into other countries. But we can distract ourselves with games, especially violent ones. Or, what is nowadays laughingly referred to as "Sports". The insane amounts spent on kicking a ball around and the insanity of the fans, which lead so often to violence. The drugs to amuse us and keep us going, the greed which fuels the whole thing worldwide.
Bigger, better, faster, shinier, lovelier, and lots of it, much, much more than I need. Go for it!
On the other side, we are also under pressure to change because of climate change. Guilty conscience every time the car or a plane is used, food being chucked away uneaten, water in bottles, check the date for "best by", etc.
And then there's the beauty industry. Good grief! Apparently, every young woman sees the Kardashian look as something to emulate. Men have still to catch up, but are closing the gap with beards and haircuts. Clothes thrown away because they are not fashionable, etc.
OF course, the world is insane! With what result?
Wars all over the place, people killing each other in the streets, nationalism rising even though not a single person on the planet had any choice on where they were born, endless discussions on what to do, but nobody listening. Borders kill
I had a little conversation with ChatGPT about this. You can read it here.
There are options to change and reduce the insanity, at least on a personal level. The secret has been in the open for millennia: "Know yourself". It's always been the solution. If I am not at peace, why should I expect others to be. If I am at peace, then I don't feel the pressure. I still have to carry out whatever I do, but I don't have to be stressed doing it.
For myself, I am beginning to realise that the more I know of myself, the more I see myself in others. If I can see myself in others, then I am certainly not going to be fighting with them, am I? But it all comes down to that: "Know Thyself".
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