Why are we so evil? Why is our specie so capable of acts of hatred and destruction?
Nobody is born evil, nobody is born hating, nobody is born bad, nobody is born afraid...... So, the only other explanation I can think of is the influence of our environment, our experiences, our culture, our society.
Shouldn't we then stop and think of what is it that we are teaching, but most importantly, what are we learning?
Do we learn tolerance or discrimination? Do we learn civility or selfishness? Who are the role models in our society and what are they teaching? So many questions, with very tough answers or none at all.
It saddens me to see so much suffering and hatred towards one another. Yes, we are different, we are diverse, but we are also the SAME. We are all people who need other people to live. We may have different language, or culture, or religion, but we are still people who need other people to live!
If we keep going at this rate, we are going to make ourselves extinct. Human kindness, innocence, hope, love...... will it be there? Why is it so hard to extend our hand to help others? Why does it seem so easy to hate and hurt????
I don't know the answers to any of these questions, and I just wish that we could all be more accepting and tolerant of our differences, because when you really look at it.... we are all the same.
I am reading the portfolios from my Psychology of Women class and I can't help it but think of how hard it is for women to accept their bodies and who they are......
Women are taught from a very early age that they have to look beautiful, young, sexy, but not too sexy, or you are just being a slut. Look around... don't take it from me. Look at the TV, look at the movies, look at the music.... look at the media! They are all beautiful, young, sexy and happy! They are all what we are trying to be. They are all what we want to be. However, the sad part is, this is not easy, and for some..... maybe impossible. And the worst part of it, is that we have made the association that what is beautiful is good, that beautiful people are happy and you can only be happy if you are beautiful.
How can we live in a world where we are constantly comparing ourselves to a standard that is unattainable in the "real world"? We have jobs, kids, and we get tired, and we have to cook, and we have to clean, and we have to go to school.....however..... we probably don't have a personal trainer, or a chef, or a 24/7 nanny, or........ the money to be able to have it all. So again, why do women have the need to compare themselves to others? The answer is too complex, which leads me to why I love to teach Psychology of Women.
In this class I try to teach my students self-respect and self-esteem. I try to teach that you should exercise to be healthy and not to be a size 0. I try to teach my students that they can be anyone THEY want to be, and that THEY can do anything THEY want. I also try to teach them that they should embrace who they are, who they are not and who they want to be. I try to teach them to stop comparing themselves to what the media wants them to be, and to just be who they are.
It is not always easy and I am not sure if they actually get the message, but if only 1 of them get it.... then it is worth it.
After a student posted on Facebook about his professor not wanting him to use the word "normal," I replied:
What is "normal" and "abnormal?" The explanation will depend on who is answering the question.
..... :)
