There is so much good and positivity in this world that I hate to write about the few bad and negative occurrences I witness. However, it is a part of everyday life and I feel passionate enough about it to express my thoughts about one particular issue; the issue of tearing people down when we really don't know anything about them.
There are different means of tearing a person down. You can say something directly to their face, you can post things on social media about them or to them, you can whisper about them, or you can take advantage of their ignorance and not-so-subtly tear them down when they are right there. I have witnessed all of these in life and it is getting to a point where I'm curious when it will stop. When we leave behind the immaturity of our high school selves? I didn't realize being rude to people in order to put your own self on a pedestal was something that was persistent in college too.
When someone is just trying to be a part of a friend group, making jokes and interacting with you because they like you, why do you have to be condescending to them? Why do you have to use sarcasm to mock them? It bothers me to know that people I have even considered friends have torn down other friends of ours. To purposefully say things that they know are not kind and are not being a "good friend". Why do I want to associate with people who have learned nothing about how to treat people in life?
Everyone has something going on. We have all heard about it before, it is a very cliche thing to say, I understand but just think about things. You don't know someone's struggles, or feelings, or thoughts, so why attack them (directly or indirectly)? You could be making them feel worse about their own condition. I've heard the "we're all depressed" line as an excuse for someone's actions, but here is the thing, if we are all depressed, why do we want to exhaust our time by making someone situation worse? Who actually has the energy to do that, anyway?
So, maybe this is cheesy, but why don't you try to be more uplifting? Compliment someone or tell someone how appreciative you are of them. Do not do it in a sarcastic, joking or noncommittal way. Mocking someone cannot possibly be that terribly entertaining to you.
So, to my fellow friends, readers, students, people, let's stop tearing people down. It isn't good for anybody. If you are doing it to make yourself feel better because you like knowing you might actually be "cooler" than someone, then that makes you look bad, causes people to look at you differently, lose respect for you and reminds people that you must be stuck in middle school. Nobody cares who is sitting at the "popular" table in the real world.
And a reminder to those of you who feel like you have been torn down, you haven't. If people care so much about your life and what you're doing, then they're the problem, not you.
Have a good day and remember to smile at a stranger.
