I'll Fight the Sickness

Self-reflection and taking a break from society are very important things for everyone, not just the strange (in a good way) independent people of today's world and the world of history, and they are important for multiple reasons.

While being a part of society is good for the soul (as one of the main components of human nature is the need to be accepted and the need for community), it is also good to get away from uniformity sometimes. Too many people all around one person, all stating their opinion at the same time, can create chaos, and even when order is brought into the chaos, the result is that everyone begins to think the same. Uniformity of opinion for too long of a time can lead to problems as no fresh ideas are brought into the mix, the opinion is not reformed for possible errors, and progress of all sorts comes to a halt in that area. Getting away from society, as a result, is a good way of refreshing your beliefs and your spirit. I would compare it to something like stepping out of a room in which there is a very loud and angry debate happening. You have time to clear your thoughts and breath fresh air before going back into the fray because while stepping back is important, in order to do any good, we must arm ourselves with our ingenuity and freshness of opinion in an attempt to restore the good kind of order in which everyone agrees to disagree and realizes that other people have valuable thoughts that could be added onto their own.

I realized all this from stepping back and taking the time to self-reflect, in fact. I do not like to be influenced by others opinions, and while I do tend to be a pushover around others, deep down, I hold onto my beliefs like they are the only thing keeping me afloat. When everyone began listening to rap and hip-hop, I grabbed some labels no one had ever heard of. When everyone began shopping at Hollister and Abercrombie, I ran over to Urban Outfitters and thrift stores. Keeping myself attached yet detached allows me to stay in the fray while seeing what needs to be done and what I can do to help. In this way, being able to step out of the room is, in my opinion, one of the most valuable skills anyone could ever hope to gain.

(The blog title for today is from the song "Born Dead" by Silverstein, featuring Scott Wade. I have in fact been trying to make all my blog titles the lyrics of songs relevant to the topic.)