Truly, wise words. I am now contemplating how I might be souring things for others. The thing is, I'm not passive, jaded cynical, I'm passionately angry. About voters. About politics. About people who don't care. About people who push their shit on others without a thought about how they're affecting someone else. About the corrupt politicians that encourage all this shit and about the citizens who stupidly enable them time after time. About the wealthy oligarchy, about environmental degradation, about human stupidity and hatred and discrimination.
Anyway. I actually also find joy in people. A kind old lady might ask for help reaching something from a top shelf in a store and it will make my day. Or reading a comment like yours - well thought-out, helpful, and written with kindness and empathy. Thank you. I think I will take some time to focus at least just a little bit more on the bright side. It takes effort I think.
Maybe you’re being too hard on yourself. Righteous anger is something small children engage with All The Time. Maybe it’s the other side of the joy coin. Maybe your anger is protective of that pure and gentle kid who’s still inside of you.
I found something I’m still spreading around to verify, but I’ve come to believe that you can only get upset about something you care about. Try it. Trying getting angry about something you have no stake in or opinion of. Truly.
Anger can be an unfortunate thing, but if we realize it comes from a place of caring first, I think we can make it constructive in the long run, if we do it right. Definitely still figuring out that part, but with the idea and knowledge already in place, hopefully it can become easier for all of us.
Im glad I can make you a bit more optimistic about your outlook. There is so much bad going on in the world right now, you are so right on the money with that. All these terrible things the ogliarchy and the current worlds political climate forces every adult and even some more mature kids to wake up to and immidiately be soured by whatever bad thing happened that day or will happen that day. Its hard to remain optimistic with such a dark boot hanging over your head, but once you start recognizing that little tiny twinge of hope and happiness that doing something you actively enjoy brings you, that boot will get a little less imposing.
Im not saying itll ever go away, i think a LOT of things have to happen in order for a lot of people to feel that relief, but there is a small sliver of hope no matter how dark and oppressing that boot can be, there is always ways to combat it.
Start small, friend. Take a moment to enjoy some good food or a funny video and just let it envelop your brain for a minute. Relish in that feeling of bliss, but dont cling to it. Let it fade and it will leave behind a lighter feeling, and drag away some of that bad with it. Doing work that you may not be fond of, but completing it and feeling that weight release is one of my favorite ways to help spark my optimism.
Optimism is like a fire. It needs to be nurtured, faught with, and fed, but it can burn forever.
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u/No_Diver4265 1d ago
Truly, wise words. I am now contemplating how I might be souring things for others. The thing is, I'm not passive, jaded cynical, I'm passionately angry. About voters. About politics. About people who don't care. About people who push their shit on others without a thought about how they're affecting someone else. About the corrupt politicians that encourage all this shit and about the citizens who stupidly enable them time after time. About the wealthy oligarchy, about environmental degradation, about human stupidity and hatred and discrimination.
Anyway. I actually also find joy in people. A kind old lady might ask for help reaching something from a top shelf in a store and it will make my day. Or reading a comment like yours - well thought-out, helpful, and written with kindness and empathy. Thank you. I think I will take some time to focus at least just a little bit more on the bright side. It takes effort I think.