Faith in Humanity A.K.A Legit post #3

Okay, so the internet ate my last post, and it's now  4am, and I clearly don't plan on getting any sleep tonight, so I'll try writing it again.

Before I start, though, I should warn you: Firstly, this post isn't trying to be humorous in any way (although bits and pieces of it may slip in here and there), because it's about a few things which have been concerning me recently, and secondly, there's a lot of things I want to talk about, so this post is going to be all over the place.

I guess I'll start by mentioning that I've been doing some reading recently, about a number of issues. I've read internet articles, and blog posts - all of which people have linked to me - as well as a number of firsthand accounts by people who are going through a pretty rough time. In particular, this post got me thinking.

I'll take a bit of a tangent here, and say some stuff about my faith in humanity. Faith in Humanity is somewhat of a renewable resource - this is why I'm capable of losing it so often. But every so often, like in the case of that particular blog post, well... I worry. Not because the post was written, but because it had to be written.

Who do you think are the rulers of the world? Is it the politicians? The banks? The one percent? No. It's the stylists, the fashionists (that's a word now), and the media who perpetuate the fundamental untruth that there is one way to look, to feel, to be, and everything else is to be considered "fat" or "ugly" - "imperfect". This is a way of thinking which honestly disgusts me, and shouldn't be tolerated in any society.

When I lose my Faith in Humanity, I'll often turn to other sources to replenish that most precious of resources. Books, games, music - I'll sit and I'll read and play and listen and revel in the creativity of others. But, the other day, a thought occurred to me: all I'm doing is blocking out lies with more lies. It pains me to say it, but is lying to each other the only thing humanity is good for? After all, what the author of a book seeks to do is to create a false world, a fiction, and draw you into it - the sign of a great writer is to make you believe what you're reading. Realism is highly prized in video games, which create worlds and scenarios which often are simply impossible. It seemed to me, that mankind's only skill is in misleading other humans. Perhaps, then, the mark of sentience is this: The ability to lie.

I guess the mark of the divine then is to choose not to.

Before I just depress myself with this, I'm going to return to what I was saying earlier. Those who control the world are those who control the people. What they see, what they think, what they judge as acceptable. There is a standard in the media today which, while not only unrealistic, is also harmful to humanity as a whole. This is wrong on so many levels: Not only is it arrogance bordering on hubris that a small group of people can define what others do and do not find attractive, but it also degrades people to purely physical objects of attraction, where only appearance is important. It is also a MASSIVE generalisation, that every single person will have the same tastes in body size, shape, colour. I'll say it again: this disgusts me. There is no such thing as "one look", there is nothing which can define what every singe person finds pleasing.

This is also harmful to the individual. This unrealistic standard, combined with the fact that obesity is a real problem in many first world countries, is creating a push for people to constantly lose weight, lest they be branded as "fat" and therefore unacceptable to society. I don't have any figures to throw at you right now, but rest assured, they are SCARY. Many perfectly healthy women will push themselves to dangerous lengths to  lose weight, often inducing, or being induced by, eating disorders like anorexia or bulimia. And the worst part? Meanwhile, women with naturally slim bodies are the ones branded as "anorexic", some going to unhealthy lengths to put on weight. As a normally skinny person myself, I've been called anorexic before, and this double standard is something which CANNOT be allowed to continue. Again, I find my reserves of faith in humanity depleting, rather quickly. Because it turns out, no matter what you look like, society will find a way to hate you. I say, put aside these stupid, ridiculous, bigoted views on what is acceptable. Be healthy, not skinny. And know this: You are beautiful.

Let me say that again:

You. Are. Beautiful.


And you are not alone.

(I feel like I should mention here that, while I'm focussing on women here, all of these issues are equally valid in men, too.)

The last thing I want to talk about is depression, which is a HUGE issue, and one which affects more people than you'd think. A lot of the time, these feelings of depression are very strongly linked to the issues of body image which I talked about up there. If you're suffering from depression, you might be reading what I said up there and be thinking, "He can't mean me. He's talking about everyone else. I'm the exception to this." You're wrong. You are beautiful. If you still don't think I'm talking to you: I am now. You are beautiful. And I mean it. You are perfect just the way you are.

In a way, I really don't feel like I'm qualified to talk about this subject. I've heard about it, I've read firsthand accounts from sufferers, I've known people who I suspect may be suffering, but I've never had depression myself. In fact, I feel like a bit of a jerk, just because when people open up about their depression, I can't sympathise, because I don't know how. But at the same time, I've sat in conversation with people who will casually put themselves down, saying that they're "fat" or "ugly", and then wave it away like nothing happened. As an Aussie, self-deprecating humour is all part of the thing, really, but these things often go well past this. To my shame, I've never spoken to any of these people about this, both because of the social stigma attached to the whole issue, and because I don't want to call them out on it, when they might be denying it to themselves.

I don't know exactly where I was going with this. Originally, the plan was to put some inspirational message here, on the off chance that any sufferers who read it would magically be happy, but all I've done is bitched about my lack of experience on the matter. And besides, it doesn't work like that anyway. Some people suffer from depression for reasons not even remotely related to body image, and others drop in and out of depression, based off a wide range of factors I'll admit I know nothing about. All I can do is give my advice and support, even though I suck at giving advice, and the only support I can give is the general "I want you to get better" type.

So, if you're interested, here's my crappy advice and other pearls of wisdom:

You are not alone. This cannot be stressed enough. You. Are. Not. Alone. There are seven billion people on this little rock we call Earth, so don't think you can take them all on at once, and never for a moment imagine you're alone.

Don't be afraid. There are people all around you who will help, if only you reach out to them. And there're precious little things in this world which you can get without reaching out. Sure, people might judge you. But you don't have to care about that. In fact, relish in it! Revel in the fact that these pitiful excuses for human beings can't hurt you. You are invincible.

Set goals. Rome wasn't built in a day, and you can't expect to snap out of your depression, just like that. Baby steps, and remember that this is your decision. Even if you make small goals, such as to smile every day, or to give yourself a compliment, or to exercise more - as long as you believe it will take you in the direction you want to go.

Be happy. I know this sounds like the sort of stupid advice that only a jerk would give, and it probably is. Besides, we've already established that I'm a jerk. Just remember that this is your ultimate goal, and keep your eyes fixed on it.

Lastly, I'll leave you with this:

Some people say that nobody's perfect.





I say everybody is.