It is amazing and fascinating to hear stories of trust and belief from my grandparents. Whether it is my grandparents leaving the keys to their home with their neighbors before going on a vacation or them trusting everyone in general. The society today has transformed so much, from even a decade ago, that misanthropy, distrust of humankind, is rampant. Although this distrust is with good reason, it is still frightening to objectively observe the world. An individual who everyone thinks they know will turn out to be something completely different and possibly horrifying. The world has grown to be a place where it has become almost impossible to trust anyone.
The widely relevant opinion of the populace today is that the world is not a safe place to live and raise children in anymore. I wake up everyday dreading the events, which would reassure my misanthropy, by the end of the day. Although rare, there are some days where my misanthropy is significantly and blatantly challenged. These are the days that I look forward to and after which I have renewed trust and hope in humanity. But the huge barrier that makes being optimistic during this age, an achievement, is that these kinds of days are starting to disappear or rarely appear for most people.
Pessimism has become the way to deal with the misanthropy and challenges of life. Since it is easier to lower your expectations and not get hurt than trusting everyone risking being hurt. The times of both World Wars, the Cold War, the Vietnam War were more dangerous than these relatively safer times. People during those times were far more optimistic than the people now because people then perceived the world differently than the new generation today. This misanthropy is partly due to the increased media coverage of every problem in the world, whereas few, if any, noble acts are covered. Being optimistic is all about how you perceive the world. There are more people who are dedicating their lives to improve other lives, more charity efforts, more organizations trying to improve lives than ever before. If you are willing to look, the dangerous place might be a beautiful garden.