So... I just unfriended someone Ive known for almost 20 years. Someone I'd worked with for 6 years. I thought of her as a friend in real life. She went to my cousin's wedding. I asked her to my Junior Prom.
She posted a someecards "When you go to the Gym, Facebook doesn't need to know about it" meme. Along with it was a caption she wrote "For real, you're still poor and ugly anyways.". It got 34 likes in an hour.
Maybe this wouldn't have rubbed me the wrong way had I not posted on Facebook about my day at the gym YESTERDAY.
It got me thinking... Why all the negativity though? There are so many things that "no one wants to hear anymore about..." that it leaves me wondering what exactly people DO care about seeing and hearing. I mean I COULD'VE replied about how she's STILL not sure who fathered her 15 year old son. How bad her botched plastic surgery looks when she's not wearing makeup. How she leases her Mercedes-Benz because after a dozen car accidents her insurance premiums would be higher than her monthly car payment.
Instead... I just cut ties. I mean, what's the point? Am I going to convince her she's deconstructing society? Is anything I say going to make her a better person?
I should've cut ties when she said NO to my prom request.
It's 2016. Is anyone REALLY improving their standard of life by degrading other's? It makes people like her look foolish as hell. All 35 of them who feel that way.
It's SO HARD to get up in the morning and TRY to be a better person than I was yesterday. Battling depression, unemployed, an adult that lived a childhood of various abuse, poor, and self-educated because college just wasn't in the cards for me. A small part of that quest for motivation is four days a week in the gym.
Everything disappoints me, eventually. Rarely do I ever confront that person, that place, or that idea directly to let it know how it failed for me. I'm not a better person than anyone else, but I respect people enough to inform them (politely) that they're losing my attention, respect, or my commitment.
I see no need in tearing somebody down in order to bring myself up. Maybe 20 years ago I was that guy, but not for the last 10. I've seen too many families, friendships, and even businesses destroyed by intolerance, by ignorance, and by... This FALSE sense pride that only seems to show it's face at the expense of someone else's misfortune. I'm done with that.
A week ago a 22 year old woman fell off a cliff while hiking, a cop in my town died leaving a family of 5 people to fend for themselves, and 39 people had no idea they would be blown up a few days later. Life is SO fragile. You never know who your unintended audience is. When you make gross generalizations, your bound to hit a few people you're close to, because the unknown is unknown.
I don't particularly like "The Man in the Mirror" because after all my struggles in life, I've been VERY close to calling it quits emotionally. I'm very affected because I'm trying to right the wrongs of my family before I could make decisions. Unmaking the world is harder than running away from it. Happiness is fleeting.
You still have to live, and keep pursuit. Life is like being in a shark tank. If you're not constantly moving, eventually you're the bait.
