The Individual is Overrated!
Look, I am all for swimming upstream and being your own person. Are you fucking kidding me? I've spent a lifetime trying to separate myself from the herd. But here's the thing I have discovered- people are good. Being a part of something is not so terrible. In fact, it is preferable to going it alone. At least it is in my case. I hate being alone. It is only when the group swallows you and tears away from you that which is truly yours that you have a problem.
So, how the hell do you DO that? How do you be a part of a community and maintain your "wholeness"? I don't know. Have a spine, maybe? You also have to be careful not to dictate the terms of the group you are in. If you like to wear leather underwear on 90 degree days that's great- but no one else should have to just because you do. But this kind of thing happens all the time. If you want to be a real Catholic you can't use birth control or be pro-choice. If you want to hang with this group or that group you might have to keep your "Land of the Lost" fixation to yourself. These may seem like small concessions, but they really are not.
Hmmmm, this is hardly the point that I set out to make. You see, my indoctrination to the world of the individual is just as deep as any group indoctrination. In each mode of thought and behavior there is an underlying set of beliefs that you are meant to cling to for the rest of your life without question. But what happens if you let them go and see what life is like on the other side?
I've discovered that I can be of use in a community and I can still be exactly who I am. I do not need to define myself as only what I am NOT. Defining myself only as a contradiction of any established group or mode of thought will eventually turn me into a black hole of nothingness. I am not nothing. I refuse to be nothing. I am an individual who is a part of a whole.
I like the human race. They may piss me off more often than not, but I still like them. It is a good thing that I work to be a part of them and share that which is unique about me with the world and allow them to share their gifts with me. It is within this balance that a rich life can be lived. Of course, in a perfect world we would all achieve that kind of balance and harmony. But we don't live in a perfect world and it can be difficult to find your place. It is hard not to impose or be imposed upon. I guess that is why people have created laws.
Hmmmm, laws. Not a perfect solution to our little spiritual conundrum, but a solution nonetheless.
I'm going to think on that one a bit.
So, how the hell do you DO that? How do you be a part of a community and maintain your "wholeness"? I don't know. Have a spine, maybe? You also have to be careful not to dictate the terms of the group you are in. If you like to wear leather underwear on 90 degree days that's great- but no one else should have to just because you do. But this kind of thing happens all the time. If you want to be a real Catholic you can't use birth control or be pro-choice. If you want to hang with this group or that group you might have to keep your "Land of the Lost" fixation to yourself. These may seem like small concessions, but they really are not.
Hmmmm, this is hardly the point that I set out to make. You see, my indoctrination to the world of the individual is just as deep as any group indoctrination. In each mode of thought and behavior there is an underlying set of beliefs that you are meant to cling to for the rest of your life without question. But what happens if you let them go and see what life is like on the other side?
I've discovered that I can be of use in a community and I can still be exactly who I am. I do not need to define myself as only what I am NOT. Defining myself only as a contradiction of any established group or mode of thought will eventually turn me into a black hole of nothingness. I am not nothing. I refuse to be nothing. I am an individual who is a part of a whole.
I like the human race. They may piss me off more often than not, but I still like them. It is a good thing that I work to be a part of them and share that which is unique about me with the world and allow them to share their gifts with me. It is within this balance that a rich life can be lived. Of course, in a perfect world we would all achieve that kind of balance and harmony. But we don't live in a perfect world and it can be difficult to find your place. It is hard not to impose or be imposed upon. I guess that is why people have created laws.
Hmmmm, laws. Not a perfect solution to our little spiritual conundrum, but a solution nonetheless.
I'm going to think on that one a bit.
posted by Bree O'Connor at 12:49 AM
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