Do People Care?
Hello All!
Upon reading this title, you probably think that someone has really torn my heart apart. You might be thinking I’m very sad and very contemplative right now. Well that’s not really the case. But some stuff has happened within the past few months and such.
I began to put my trust in individuals and I was saddened to find out that, that really wasn’t the case. I trusted that some individuals who were in my life would be there for a lot longer than they were. I knew of distancing self and others, but I had hope that people would generally be there for others. It turns out, that’s not the case.
Within the past week, I lost quite a bit of people through arguments and general distancing. Initially I was very sad. I held a lot of love for these individuals. But things happened and some became distant and some, from what I realized, saw me as a means to an end. I am not a means to an end, I am Sterling Grissom…. nice to see ya!
From what I have already said, you probably might think that this is a blog post about the people who hurt my trust and the people who left my life. That’s not the case. While I am angry for the actions that these individuals took, I have ultimately nothing but hope and love for them. This reminds me of the newest Ariana Grande song, “Thank U, Next”.
I generally want to talk about something and discuss things in a heart to heart manner. Do you all feel like people generally hope for the best in many individuals and situations? Or, do you think that people innately have selfish intents when it comes to situations and relationships? Basically, are people objective or subjective? And in the end, do most people care for one another?
Now, I think that this is a very different answer depending on your experiences. Each individual is treated differently within certain situations and actions have a different impact on different people. I would argue that people generally want to do good things, but ultimately the easiest way to finish something is to ignore it’s impacts on other people.
Let’s say you have been friends with someone for awhile, but you have decided that this person causes you some form of anxiety and distress and such. You want to remove this person out of your life, but you also like the experiences that you and this person have had together. What do you do? Some individuals would just block the person digitally and physically and hope that the person gets the hint. Others would give subtle hints. Some would be honest depending on their feelings for that day. But we have to realize that some would talk to the individual to find out if their feelings are opposite, matching, and the solutions to fixing the issue whether the other individual try harder, the individual listen more, or call the relationship off.
I would argue that the latter part of the possible ways of interacting is the most comparable with both individuals. But for some, they take the easiest way out of things which makes me worry about that individual to begin with. If distancing yourself is what you choose, then what happens when you can’t do that. You can’t digitally block your spouse and expect that they will get the hint and file for divorce; actions would have to take place like marriage counseling and possibly divorce if that is brought up and agreed upon.
But I would also like to understand individuals who are in vulnerable populations. I guess in that scenario, maybe a person with extreme social anxiety would probably find confrontation to be very difficult. An individual who has a form of a disability might find it difficult too. People in abusive relationships might find that talking can’t be an option. And for individuals like me, who are scared of making a mountain out of a mole hill, find it difficult to talk about an issue due to a feeling of inferiority.
But without people talking and things not being brought forward in an objective way, even if it’s personal, people can feel like maybe the person never cared. I look back on situations that have happened within my life and I have started to see the signs that maybe an individual was purposefully distancing themselves. Or I look back at a situation and see the person for who they truly were, someone that saw me as a means to an end; not for who I am as a person, but for what I bring to the table.
I am slowly beginning to understand that people see things for the face value (commodity fetishism) and the opportunity something or someone brings. Many do not see things for the impact it has on others. I am deeply saddened by this because I want there to be hope that we live in a world where, deep inside, people care about each other. I try to do that everyday. While I can have issues with people, I generally hope that people do well in life and have happiness.
My best friend and I often joke that we are awful at talking crap about other people. “Remember this one person from high school? Yeah, weren’t they annoying?! But I can’t lie, I really hope that they are doing well. What are they up to, do you know? I think they wanted to be a vet and I hope that they can achieve their goals!” Or even today, we were talking about things like different fandoms on the internet and their incorporation of religion into those fandoms that maybe do not have religious tones. With general curiosity, we want to know why an individual might think a certain way and not “I will never understand what they mean”. Maybe that comes from a critical thinking standpoint, since that is what college seems all about right now.
But as I have previously stated, when we have selfish intentions, does that mean that we do not care? Or should we always have those that are impacted in mind? Do things become way too complicated when we do that?
In the end, I do not know if one answer is right or wrong. Depending on the circumstance, the answer can be variable. But I want you all to comment below what you think about these questions that have been asked in the post.
Questions:
When we have selfish intentions, does that mean that we do not care?
Should we always have those that are impacted in mind?
Do things become way too complicated when we do that?
Do you all feel like people generally hope for the best in many individuals and situations?
Do you think that people innately have selfish intents when it comes to situations and relationships?
Are people objective or subjective?
Do most people care for one another?
I hope to hear your guys’ comments on Facebook or here on the website!
xoxo,
-Sterling T. Grissom