We’re all given the same opportunities to learn, grow, evolve, and be educated (I’m not referring to college. You can learn at a library for free.) What it comes down to is the desire to be better than we were yesterday. 

Where Do We Get Our Information?

It seems much easier to acquire knowledge from our friends or family. We don’t have to verify whether something is real or not, whether it is actual or fictional, a fact or gossip. 

When we don’t question anything, we take on the beliefs of someone else. It’s like wearing someone else’s underwear. It’s too personal, and sometimes it stinks.

It’s human nature to want to belong to a group of people who share our thoughts and values. It helps us avoid having to check in with ourselves because we’re fused into a collective soul. We don’t have to think or question anything because everything is laid out for us in an enjoyable path of least resistance. Most of us never bother to find out who originated the ideas, either. They go on living uncomfortably numb. 

I was raised Catholic and attended church every Sunday. Not once did I feel okay among the people of the church. I felt stifled and couldn’t relax. This was most likely due to the fact a priest and “usher” (the person who led the people to an open seat) were neither welcoming nor kind. So, I questioned being there, my faith, and the reasons why attending mass there made me feel so bad about myself.

Oh, I still have my faith and pray. I am a good soul and follow the doctrine of Jesus, who believed in the good of human beings, you know – “do unto others as you would have done unto you.” But even Jesus knew that humans would screw up and go down paths of thorny pickers if others they trusted went first.

Obviously, I don’t know this for sure, but I believe Jesus knew how to pick his battles and didn’t waste his energy or time on people he couldn’t reach. He had his followers, but did he ask them to believe him over everything else? I wonder.

The Group Dynamic

A collective group gets to go through life uncomfortably numb. What I mean by this is that when we don’t take the time or care to check in with who we are, what we believe, or how we want to live our lives, we stop feeling. Otherwise, we’d have to deal with our thoughts. In a group dynamic, we can become entangled in drama and excitement that override independent thought.

Hey, I was there. My group was my family and friends. Although I didn’t adopt their beliefs, I did take on their pain because I was the one who was aware of it. As time went on, I, too, became uncomfortably numb, and even though I knew I had to change, I just didn’t know how. But at least I had the awareness of that.

I didn’t want to be uncomfortably numb. I wanted to feel happy, energetic, and joyful, and live every day to the fullest. I knew it would happen if I kept working on it. Oh, yeah, I forgot to mention that we actually have to do some work individually. Feeling stuff helps us to change, grow, and be better versions of ourselves.

Learning for Ourselves

Being curious helps us want to learn new stuff. There is no way we can know everything, yet there are some who really give it the ol’ college try. I find those people rather obnoxious and boring. They add nothing of value to me, even though they profess how much they know.

See, it’s not living well when you have to prove to everyone how much you know more than everyone else. That’s existing uncomfortably numb. When you have to constantly be the loudest, brag, or make yourself high and mighty, I believe it’s because there’s an insecurity not addressed. There’s a little girl or boy inside who didn’t receive the proper attention during their formative years, when worth and value were not acknowledged. I would surmise, like during my upbringing, that when you feel not good enough, you spend your life trying to be perfect to avoid scrutiny and judgment. In my experience, the “know-it-alls” want those around them to feel bad about themselves, so we don’t see them. 

And know-it-alls are living uncomfortably numb. 

There are too many people uncomfortably numb, and it’s causing a huge problem for our humanity. This phenomenon has been sweeping through our country for a while now and social media is only making it worse. 

Let’s splash some water on our faces to wake up a little bit more and start being curious, question what we think, and enjoy learning and evolving into the best version of ourselves.

Thank you for reading this and I hope I’ve given something positive to think about.  

To feeling and thinking,

Francesca

 

Created by a human for humans.

2024 – Francesca M.E. – All Rights Reserved.