You know, I realize how annoying optimism must be the eternal pessimists out there. "Yeah, yeah, yeah. Whatever. You're looking at the world through rose-coloured glasses/eyes. You don't know what the real world is like". I understand why that attitude exists. However, I am not only an optimist, I am also a realist. I totally get that the world is quite a harsh place. Not everyone in it is good. Not every situation can or will lead to a happy ending. But, I do believe that with every negative point you find in anything, there is typically a positive flip-side. Try it! You can be sure to either annoy the heck out of the pessimists or help out your friends. Either way, you have fun and there's no harm. ;) I find that my optimistic statements tend to start with "at least...". Like this: "I got a ketchup stain on my new white pants!" "At least the stain will come out if you attack it with a bunch of wet napkins for an hour and half." (My Saturday morning experience, as Dylan and I were heading to Portage.) Okay, maybe not exactly like that. But, there really is a positive side to most things, it just takes a second to expose it sometimes! I understand that the world is not all unicorns and butterflies, but it's not all death and destruction either. I just choose to see the beauty and opportunity of the world, but that doesn't mean I'm avoiding the bad things and pretending that it's all going to go away. Optimism and realism can work together!
My brain has now turned to mush. I guess that's it for today!
Good and bad are relative to your own perspective, culture and your genetics. Humans are born with a basic feeling of empathy, so it is bad to hurt others. However, the python that you've lovingly raised to seven feet long is thinking how good it will be when he finally eats you.
ReplyDeleteIs he evil? I think not. We only have good and evil because we are social animals (a dog feels pain if he/she hurts the pack or does something the alpha decides is 'bad' and feels good when the pack is happy) however a snake or a reptile would only feel pleasant vs. unpleasant. It would be very pleasant he thinks, to eat your chihuahua, even if it is an unusually sweet and obedient one.
The world isn't harsh, it just is.