Lives of Humans, Beyond the Obvious.

Summary

The article reflects on the complexity of human lives, emphasizing the importance of empathy and understanding that every person has a unique and intricate existence beyond our initial perception.

Abstract

The author of the article delves into the depth of human experiences, acknowledging that what we see on the surface is merely a fraction of a person's reality. It suggests that people often mask their true selves and that everyone faces their own profound challenges. The piece underscores the necessity of recognizing the humanity in others, asserting that each individual, regardless of our acquaintance with them, leads a life as rich and complex as our own. The author argues for a fundamental human responsibility to empathize with others, considering their experiences as valid and significant. The article concludes with a personal note from the author, revealing their background as a full-time mom and former educator, and expressing a philosophy of embracing joy and creativity in life.

Opinions

The author initially believed in the inherent goodness of people but later realized that many are adept at manipulation, and true understanding comes from letting go.
People's behaviors are deeply rooted in their circumstances, which may not be apparent or easily understood by others.
It is common for individuals to live their lives without acknowledging the full personhood of those around them, viewing others as mere background characters.
The author suggests that every person, regardless of our relationship with them, has a life filled with experiences and emotions that we cannot fully comprehend.
There is a human responsibility to empathize with others, even if we only know them superficially, such as by their username or face.
The author believes that all people deserve equal consideration and care, and that intimacy or familiarity should not be a prerequisite for empathy.
The author values fun and creativity, as evidenced by their enjoyment of spy network series and creating memes with their children.

What we see is only the tip of the iceberg. Life with all its challenges, spares none, not even the ones who say there are none.

I used to think people are really good at heart. I beg to differ now and realise they just know how to play you. Most of the time. But then again, I have had a better chance at life, when I let go of them- physically and emotionally.

And many times, I understood at hindsight, that people behave the way they do, not because they didn't know better. Their circumstances were profound and convincing to them and there isn't a thing we could have done differently perhaps, if we were to imagine a life in their shoes.

We are all human. All of us.

That seems obvious doesn’t it? Simple even. But how many people wake up every day and live their lives like everyone else is just a background character, just a body, just an afterthought. We will only ever see our own consciousness so we don’t remember that other people’s are just as big, just as complicated. And also different. One would be driven to distraction trying to imagine life in the shoes of everyone they see, so we learn to keep our heads down and eyes turned inwards.

Do we see people? Think about it. Do we really see them?

When we are kids we think our teachers live at the school and only exist to tell us when to finish our homework by. Some people don’t grow out of that. All they see when they look at other people is how those people affect them. Each person we make accidental awkward eye contact with on our way to work, everyone on our bus, the people we watch on tv, they all have a life as deep and complex as ours, sometimes we do not realize that.

They have gone through things we will never, ever understand, just as we have gone through something they will never be able to comprehend exactly.

But we have to try.

It’s a fundamental human responsibility to empathize when someone tells us they have endured something.

Even if all we know about them is their face, or just their name, or even just their username. That is a fucking person, regardless. A person as equally real and complete and fully realized as we are.

A person as important as our child, or our friend or our mom or dad. All people, are people.

You shouldn’t need to know them intimately to care when they are hurting.

(Thank-you for reading this article!)

My passion is writing. Everything I write about is geared toward things that I deeply cares about—experiences, thoughts, drama, and emotions. A full-time mom to two handsome boys—11 and 4—I built a career around insurance underwriting and later, teaching of English literature and language in high school, before vanishing into full-time mommy responsibilities. I believe that life is not meant to be serious all of the time, and that we should have fun as much as we can. Besides writing, I enjoy watching spy network series and living it up by creating laugh memes with my two lovely young boys!

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