Can we all just be okay with being different?

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(Heads up for my sensitive readers out there, I use some MILD ‘bad language’ in this post…)

 

In today’s modern world of complete multi-media infiltration, there has been a surge of people writing posts or articles about how other people are doing it wrong.

 

Recently there was some blog post going around about how people post too much of the happy parts of their lives on Facebook.  The writer argued that people shouldn’t do that, because it makes other people jealous and sad about their own lives.  Okay…   But then there are others that say if people post about the bad or sad things in life, then those folks are whining and complaining too much, and “Facebook is not the place for that.”  Yet there are others who complain about how annoyed they are at seeing people’s neutral daily life stuff.  Pics or statuses about their dinners.  Or their pets.  Or their kids.  Etc, etc, etc… Bla bla bla….  (Happiness is attacked, sadness is attacked, neutral boring stuff is attacked.  Geez, you just can’t win!)

Hey, how about this?  How about we realize that people are different and different things inspire us or make us happy.  Different things bring us comfort, and different things get us motivated.  I personally love hearing uplifting stories of happy events.  You found love after a lifetime of bad relationships?  I’m SO going to like hearing about that!  You took an exciting trip to a tropical island?  I’m gonna look through those photos of yours and it’s gonna make me smile!  (Maybe I might even think about visiting there myself.)  You started your own business and now you want to let everyone know (for emotional support AND to attract potential customers)?  Way to go!  Great use of social media!  You tried something new for dinner and it was so great you wanted to post a pic?  Well, I just might ask you for the recipe!  (As long as there’s no beans in it – beans are yucky.)

 

Social media isn’t just “social” for everyone, either.  Many of us use it to promote our own work or businesses.  For example, a travel agent such as myself is certainly going to post a ton of travel pictures.  I’m hoping you’ll want to go somewhere and you’ll use me as your travel agent!  Quite simple, actually!  Or if I’m going to be singing in a show or a concert, I’ll post about it to let people know about it – they might want to come!

 

Now, I know there are people out there with the whole “misery loves company” mentality.  But why?  Does the suffering of others really make some people feel better about themselves?  Life is full of ups and downs.  Isn’t it best to always support people with kindness no matter where they are on life’s roller coaster at any given moment?

 

I personally tend to be a “Happy Poster” most of the time.  It’s just my style.  I truly like to look at life through a happier lens.  Does that mean I’m perpetually happy every single day?  Hahahahaha!   Seriously… no.  Some days are harder than others, and some days are just shit.  Some days are fantastic!  (This is because I am a living human being on planet Earth, by the way.)  But I really try not to dwell on the negative stuff.  What good does that do?  Dude, trust me, I’ve got lots of not-so-great stuff in my past and my present.  Would it really help to be reminded on a regular basis about the abusive relationship in my distant past and how it set me up for a lifelong battle with depression and insecurity?  Umm, I honestly don’t think so.  I did write a blog post about my problems in that area earlier last year, in hopes that maybe others dealing with the same kind of thing could feel less alone.  But it’s not my personality to dwell on that and post about it every single time I’m having a personal crisis.  I wallow in deep misery for a little, then go on.  That’s just me.  I also don’t feel the need to post about the super negative shit going on regularly in the present.  My belief is that if you focus on the happy things in life, that you will be happier more often.  If you put good into the world, good will come back to you.  And because of my bad past, I’m truly over-the-moon elated about finding the love of my life!  And I’m gonna share it, dammit!  Love is super awesome!   It’s healing my soul from the inside out, and I’m so stinkin’ grateful for it.

 

However, sometimes people might just want to freakin’ post about something negative because it makes THEM feel better to post about a hardship on that particular day.  That’s for them to decide, and it’s their right to do so.  Post away, unhappy people!  I know that somedays I miss Miloš so much while he’s away working on the ship, that I’ll post about how much I’m missing him.  A few encouraging words might be all I needed out of it, and by posting about it, I got that little bit of support that I needed.  Perhaps the responses were the help that got me through the day.  Heck, even just sharing my feelings openly makes me more able to cope with them – bottling them up makes it worse.  (And if I got to the point of posting about it, it was because the feelings were so all-consuming that I needed a little encouragement to snap me out of the bad place.)

 

In all honesty, I think our REAL challenge is to not judge and not criticize people for sharing what they share, or posting what they post.  It’s their lives.  As long as someone is not being hurt or attacked, people can post whatever they want!  Maybe YOU wouldn’t post a pic of your dinner.  Okay, fine.  No worries.  But just because someone else does, it doesn’t make them wrong.  And it doesn’t make you better than them.  It makes you DIFFERENT than them.  Some people post a little, some people post a lot.  Who cares?!  Differences make the world interesting.  Let’s spread kindness and love, not hate and judgement!

 

Post away!  Share away!  Or scroll on by… Do what makes YOU happy.  Just don’t forget to be kind to others!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Photo of author
Jennifer was initially drawn to Europe for two reasons: music and love.  She lived in Vienna for four years, and now calls Croatia home for much of each year, as she married a native Croatian. Since 2015, Jennifer has worked as a tour director and cruise director on European river cruises for a major American travel company, and has become an expert in all of the cities along her routes on the Danube, Rhine, and Main Rivers. She also has traveled to Disney World almost every year since 1985, and knows Disney World inside and out. As a travel agent, Disney World is her primary specialty, and she has helped many Disney newbies and veterans have amazing trips with her insider information.

2 thoughts on “Can we all just be okay with being different?”

  1. Jen, Great post!! I love reading about all the great places you visit, how you have found the love of your life and, believe it or not, love seeing the photos of your dinners!! Who knew it would be so fascinating?? Some people can’t stand for others to be happy. Sad for them. You can’t please everyone so don’t even try.

    Thanks so much for sharing with us. I look forward to hearing you sing again!

    Patti

    Reply

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