In a post from yesterday, Pathologically Yours, I wrote about how I have come to see my maladies as gifts! When one possesses a pathology, it often leads to levels of introspection not undertaken by those in the norm. However, what I decided to leave for this post is to say that Norm has never been in the building to start with!
I don't think I have EVER met an individual who did not possess, at least, one pathology. Every person I have ever known falls outside of the elusive norm in one area or another. For some people, the pathology is organic. For others, it may be environmental, psychological or behavioral.
What I am suggesting here is that there is no idealized man, woman or child who has ever walked the earth. Consequently, in our own time in our own way, each of us has been granted the opportunity to look deep inside to confront the beauty and ugliness that resides in each person. We each have a door that we can walk through.
That said, it's probably a far easier journey -- easier in relative terms -- for those of us who suffer from social awkwardness and isolation, self-imposed or otherwise. Because we engage in far less interaction with the outside world, conversations with ourselves fill the void. We seek out our own company because it often is the only close company we keep.
I don't think I have EVER met an individual who did not possess, at least, one pathology. Every person I have ever known falls outside of the elusive norm in one area or another. For some people, the pathology is organic. For others, it may be environmental, psychological or behavioral.
What I am suggesting here is that there is no idealized man, woman or child who has ever walked the earth. Consequently, in our own time in our own way, each of us has been granted the opportunity to look deep inside to confront the beauty and ugliness that resides in each person. We each have a door that we can walk through.
That said, it's probably a far easier journey -- easier in relative terms -- for those of us who suffer from social awkwardness and isolation, self-imposed or otherwise. Because we engage in far less interaction with the outside world, conversations with ourselves fill the void. We seek out our own company because it often is the only close company we keep.
perception of self is difficult to pinpoint, because it's inherently biased! and it requires comparison with others, whom we do not know as intimately, and societal perceptions, which can fluctuate greatly depending on where one lives and the company one keeps!
ReplyDeletein solitude, we can examine ourselves, but we run the risk of being self-absorbed! we cannot see our strengths and weaknesses without seeing the strengths and weaknesses of others.