My writing has been somewhat dreary as of late. I think it’s been meaningful, but dreary nonetheless. In part, that is because of my reading, but a big part of it is all of the political ads and issues of civil liberty being passed around Facebook like a bottle of booze on the street corner. They can make one swim in an ocean of philosophical thoughts, and it’s easy to drown if you’re not careful. Some days I’d just as soon pass on that bottle.
I’m as guilty as everyone else. I see an issue that I think deserves some attention, and I respond. But for the life of me, does it ever stop? Can we have just one week when we don’t see some hate filled post about what one presidential hopeful is saying about the other? Is it possible that we could have a week without someone sending another person to damnation because of their beliefs? It’s exhausting. I really feel like I’m running some intellectual debate marathon. Is all of this stuff even true? (Fact- checker please!) Then there is the issue of whom I might offend by posting certain thoughts.
If I post a song, a quote, a picture, or a news story I will be cyber attacked by someone or another. Being that I’m not one to change my opinion to fit specific friends, I do lose some. That is fine. If they were true friends I wouldn’t lose them over petty Facebook debates. But that is the part that rubs on my nerves like a cat singing opera. Why can’t I just have an opinion openly without having someone get their feelers stepped on?
For the most part, I’m a passive person. It’s a free Country; you believe what you want. But I am supposed to suppress any opinion I might have? It’s Facebook. I get it. If one posts something, they should be prepared for a response. But do people have to call names and act like sixth graders? Is that what we’ve become, a society of adolescents? Here’s what I would really enjoy.
I want a week of nothing buy LOL Cats. I would like to sign in and see a hundred posts of jokes or viral videos featuring some crazy person, who obviously knows nothing about physics, jump off the roof onto a pile of mattresses and land in a child’s plastic pool. What I crave is the humor we seem to lack these days.
We’re never going to change anyone’s stance on religion or politics, especially via Facebook. There is seemingly is no “middle ground”. So why don’t we hang it up for a while and just laugh? Let’s all have two drinks and contemplate why a child can hear us open a bag of chips from six blocks away, but they can’t ever hear us ask them to clean their room. Let’s talk about the glory of a Sunday afternoon nap while “watching” football. Yes. I want to hear about the time you and seven friends fit into your 1979 Chevette and road tripped to see your favorite band whilst butchering Bohemian Rhapsody.
What I really want is less chaos and insane arguments over chicken sandwiches and Pepsi. I just want the world to lighten up a little bit. You can only gorge yourself at the table of knowledge so long before your brain explodes. I don’t need someone in my face every second of every day telling me what I should or should not stand for. I don’t need to be condemned for not reposting every single picture that depicts animal abuse. (Most of those are pointless anyway.) Yes, I hate cancer, animal and child abuse, and anything that stinks of racism or hate. But I don’t need to focus on those things in my every waking hour. Do I? (Maybe I’m just a jerk and I should. But I won’t.) Not every meal can be liver and onions. Sometimes I just want something a little less heavy and a little more palatable, like Cheetos and pineapple ice cream.
Why we’re all so serious I have no clue. Maybe it’s because it’s an election year, or maybe it’s because social media makes issues more available than just watching the news. No matter what it is, I think we need to remember that the sky isn’t always falling. Some issues need to be addressed, but we don’t need to kill our happiness to address them. We don’t need to have a cyber-fist-fight to try to settle these issues.
In the end, it is the coming together, the unity, that solves these problems. Some things, like religion, will never be unified. The best we can ever hope for is a “to each his own” attitude. Until that time arrives, let’s all do each other a huge public service and stop spoon feeding one another. And get to work on that viral video. I’m waiting.
Tammie Niewedde shares her life with 24, 21, and 16 year old sons. She also has a 2 year old grandson whose energy level reminds her exactly how old she is (40, and she owns that proudly!). In her home, you will find a 120 pound fur factory named Dexter and a few cats whom have decided that she is merely their staff. The root of her love for books, writing, and animals comes from being a child whose only siblings were books and her animals. She is a full-time student, mother, coordinator of all that is chaos, and a hopeless list maker. Most of her writing is creative non-fiction that describes her real life adventures. Her acerbic, biting sense of humor may capture your heart, or it may induce rage. Nonetheless what she writes is true to life. You can often find her hanging out with the kiddos, studying, reading, writing, and making lists…of everything! You can find her on Facebook!
