A Depressing Thought

Tuesdays suck. Since the invention of the five-day work week, Tuesdays have been reviled. We're prepared for Monday. "If I can just make it through Monday," we say to ourselves, "this week is going to be okay." And we do. We soldier through Monday and, proud that we made it through intact, we approach the rest of the week with a smile on our faces... only to be suckerpunched by Tuesday. This has become as much truth as the fact that internet brings out the very worst in people, over the years, and only rarely the best. So I figure, let's wallow in it for a bit, eh? Grab a beer, or your beverage of choice, and let's talk about some stuff.  We hurt people, sometimes intentionally, sometimes not, and there is nothing we can do to stop it.  Humans are fragile creatures, both physically and emotionally. It only takes a pound of pressure to break the skin (fact not checked, due to laziness. Heard it in Firefly, and accepted it as truth (it is true, but we're not here for a physics lesson)), and it only takes a single word to break the heart. 

Everything, whether good or bad, or horrifying, was fully justifiable in the mind of the person doing it. Just kind of take a second and think about that. Every poisoning, or pat on the back - or stab in the back - every holocaust and mass murder, and every plague released, have all seemed to be perfectly reasonable to the person committing it at the time. This, along with every nonviolent action as well. Every insult, betrayal, rumor spread, and every broken heart... was all perfectly justifiable to the person giving it. Even if they later regretted it, that is the undeniable truth. 

"Yes," you might think, "but I'm not like that. I try to do right by everyone I meet. I do my best to be a good person.'"

Well, so do I, that's why this is depressing. Since I turned 22, and learned that not everybody has the sense of humor to not take me seriously, I've done my damnedest to be a nice guy, in my own way. I take care of my own, and try not to make waves... but that doesn't stop me from hurting people any more than it stops you. 

Hell, sometimes even offhanded compliments that are either poorly worded or simply misinterpreted can cut more deeply than an outright insult. 

An interesting event is finding out that someone you barely remember ever meeting hates you because of some slight, whether real or imagined. You brush it off, but if you stop and think about it for a moment, someone has been hurting, bearing your scar for years, and you can't even remember their name. It happens with a surprising level of frequency. 

Whatever your crimes, whether intentional or not, someone looks at you through eyes tinged with hate. The only thing we can do is everything we can to be kind to one another, and hope for the best. That won't help, because at the end of the day, you will hurt people, no matter how hard you try not to.

See You Next Tuesday... On a related note, if I have caused you hurt, ever in the time I've known you, I am sorry. Even in the rare occasion I have acted with actual malice, I was probably out of line, and I am sorry.