This culture is getting exhausting. Don't you think? I feel like every time I blink someone, for whatever social construct they care to represent, is trying to one up someone else or others in a social construct that is adjacent or, at minimum, dissimilar to their own.
What the hell is going on?!
There's a lot of social issues going on right now, such as the Ferguson/Staten Island-related protests, and for good reason. But I'm not talking so much about the BIG topics. I'm talking more about the other, less talked about areas: big and small, tall and short, fat and skinny, strong and weak. The topics of which are still regarded one way or another and are used as a muse for musical artists. (I find that there's a stark contrast between a musical artist and a musician, and I'll decide later in this post whether or not I feel that's a relevant topic to discuss. For now, just understand why I didn't simply say "musician" to finish that last sentence.) And then what happens after one of these artists expresses their displeasure of another social construct? Yup. You guessed it. A member of a different social construct rebuts in a half-scathing kind of way.
This vicious circle keeps going until everyone's head explodes.
So, with that said, let's clear something up: You're fine. You're so perfectly fine in your perfect way. You are you. How you look is regarded as negative or positive in this society, but those judgments are all bullshit (more so the negative ones). The main reason people act this way is because there is something they hold self-consciously about themselves that they can't get over on their own. So, instead of having good friends to listen to them, or seeking some much-needed counseling, they just berate others to make themselves (temporarily) feel better. I feel for these people. They are the prototypical bully that we encounter in grade school and high school. They made us feel like shit growing up. So much so that we're either extreme introverts or we just hate people, mostly. They screwed around with us because there were deeper underlying issues going on in their lives i.e. they had abusive parents, they had dead/dying parents, their parents were alcoholics/druggies, etc.
Knowing these things, let them be abrasive. Let them throw those word-stones. You know you better than anyone knows you. When we were younger, we held on to every word as truth. We didn't know ourselves yet, because we were young and stupid. Any time someone called us a "stupid little doofus-head" before the age of, like, 10, we took those words seriously. Like, "Man, I HAVE to be a stupid little doofus-head, because someone told me I am!" When we were younger we probably were stupid little doofus-heads, but that's besides the point.
Today, we're all adults (if non-adults are reading this, then, sorry, you're not an adult. Also, finish reading this--because it'll help you, too--and then go do homework or something). If someone calls you a weak little shit as an adult, or implies that you're fat, or implies that you turn invisible when you turn sideways because of your skinny nature, let them! (Personally, I tend to laugh at these words, because life is absurd and so are people.) But don't let them GET to you. They're all stupid social constructs that society created to belittle or berate others anyway. Yeah, it's easier said than done seeing it this way, I know. It's especially hard when these words are hurled at us by loved ones i.e. parents, spouses, best friends, etc. But that vicious circle I mentioned needs to end.
Quit retaliating! It's silly! It's useless! It's silluselessy! And, plus, it spreads the one thing we're trying to vanquish ultimately: Hatred. Sometimes the best weapon against these emotionally less fortunate people is silence. Smile and nod at whatever negative bs they hurl towards you. If you do this, trust me, they'll stew in it. They won't get the fix of someone else's displeasure to make them feel (temporarily) better and then, once they realize that berating other people doesn't work for them, they'll soon figure out that they need help to fix their problems. Real help. It just takes one person at a time to help break that circle-- and this creates real, tangible change.
In conclusion, you are fine. You are so fine. You are you. What makes you what you are should make you happy. I'm sure you've heard stuff like this before, but it's not said enough! You are so perfectly you, and there's no one else in the world like you. You're different! You're weird! Love it!
"Never forget what you are. The rest of the world will not. Wear it like armor, and it can never be used to hurt you"
- PatInTheHat
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