A pandemic has long since plagued humanity, festering within the chest and the mind of the individual, scooping out practically everything with merit. Contagious, it consumes massive communities, capturing its members all at once with only a few escaping captivity. Worse yet, its victims remain unaware, some even possessing fond feelings for this invisible force of disintegration. And it never stops. The ravaging never stops. The process subsists in hordes of population, devouring the individual. It never stops.
You may ask of the nature of this disease that has swept the world. Is it a virus? How many have succumbed to it? How do you know if you have it? Well, I have news that might surprise you. The pandemic, although a virus of sorts, feeds only on concepts of intangibility. Yes, it may also have an effect on one’s physicality, but it primarily affects the mind and the heart in a metaphorical way. This disease is, in fact, forgetting what matters, and something known as routine shakes it into action.
What do you think about? When do you think? Why do you think?
Do you become most philosophical when brushing your teeth?
How do you think? What frequently crosses your mind?
When did you last take a few minutes to do absolutely nothing? When did you last appreciate something? When did you last feel thankful for what you have?
When did you last remember what matters?
A large portion of life is fighting to see the beauty that surrounds us. Although we somewhat have control over our lives, society has constructed a mold that each of us must squeeze through. While fitting through this impossible shape, we find ourselves absolutely swamped with pressures and demands and deadlines, and there comes a point that nothing matters except the swirling numbers, the screaming steps we must fulfill.
We sink into a routine. We attempt to find sleep after spending hours typing on a computer. We heat up processed food and pop open canned vegetables. We sit around the television because we feel too tired to do anything. We work, and then we crash on the couch. We fuss at our family members and let irritation consume us. We allow our minds to dance with thoughts reeking of negativity. We do not care. We do not want to care. We work and then lounge around and then sleep, repeating the cycle again and again until a vacation sparks a little emotion. Otherwise, we feel apathetic.
This happens to nearly everyone. In fact, some fail to ever recover, allowing routine to tear apart their humanity. Humans are more than merely machines. We have this earth and what lies beyond it. Beauty exists all around us even though we either shove it aside or butcher it. We are forgetting what truly matters, what it means to be human. Although existing can prove to be painful and messy, existence itself is art. Everything exists on a grand scale, so we must take everything into consideration while still including the most miniscule fragments of life.
What do you think it means to be human?
How do you view existence?
What do you consider beautiful, and where do you think beauty can be observed?
What matters to you?
Wednesday’s Fun Fact:
One theory of intelligence is that multiple forms exist instead of one general form (please look up Gardner).
Imagine education that considers each of these. Wow.
I wonder if that would be possible.
