If you know me, the fact that I absolutely hate "#blessed" is not new. Aside from the fact it is a humble-brag in its most basic form, it is also the implication that a higher power chose you over countless billions to bestow some sort of greatness or a general good feeling. You are "oh so lucky" to have something others do not. In addition to this unfortunate trend, another thing that really grinds my gears (If I can take a page from Peter Griffin I will any day!) is the obsessive talk about diets, non-diets, work-outs and non-work-outers. You know the ones who either state, "OMG am totally going gluten free/vegan/paleo/clean eating, to lose weight and get healthy!" Or the, "Totally ran 6 miles, then did bikram yoga, now I can't wait to swim 5 miles. #Tri-athleteforever!" Then the ever present, "I totally love my body, why would I waste time working out when I can spend hours cuddling under a blanket fort with Jack and Jill!"
What all this probably relates down to is every Tom, Dick, Harry and Sally feeling the need to update the world on every poo, snack, push-up or church service attended. Despite the fact that it also implies, in a passive-aggressive way that what you are doing is better than others, for me it goes deeper. I consider myself pretty reasonable and laid back. I eat what ever I want within reason. I work out, unless something fun comes up. I am not one to care what other people think of me, ahem, apparently after this blog that point is moot. But, what I am trying to sum up, is that we are so anxious about what we are doing and why we are doing it, it drives little ol' pragmatic me absolutely nuts. In not knowing why this was driving me nuts, per usual routine, I self-reflect on it. It has to be something wrong with me, I am the common denominator = Me as the problem. But then, as I read the greatest article written in a long time an idea struck me.
http://theweek.com/article/index/263639/i-went-undercover-to-find-out-why-people-do-crossfit
You see, as someone who has always struggled to "fit into things" because I am rather large, physically and personality wise, I just stopped trying and started to count my #blessings for all that is good. It as been amazing. Part of doing that required me to figure out my general preferences in life and learning about what I believe and why. This might sound condescending, but part of doing that was realizing that the largess of our world transcends anything even remotely related to us. The little tiny human beings on a giant world, with billions of other tiny little human beings, making said giant world smaller by the day. Aside from the stark realization that our actions do in fact have a reaction that definitely effects others, in the grand scheme of things we are completely insignificant when we act alone. So why the anxiousness? Why no moderation?
This my friends is what bothers me. You see I have a dirty little secret that I learned years ago from one of my favorite professors. When I say I transcend modern day politics, I truly transcend modern day politics. My confession is that the giant conservative streak that runs deep inside me desperately clings to moderation and tradition. Not in the sense that I actually believe gay marriage is bad, or that it is any of my business what my neighbor lady does with her who-ha. Totally socially liberal. It is my pragmatic nature that just wants people to chill out, just be. This could be my crippling inability to deal with other people's anxiety, but dudes....just chill out. Do what humans always do and survive.
What I am saying, if you are lactose intolerant, just cut out dairy. No need to go full paleo. Clean eating? What the hell does that even mean? I hope you are washing your fruits and veggies, even they are organic. Is that what it is implying? Or folks, could it be someone branding a term to make money off you? How about we say, we are cooking the traditional way with whole ingredients, just like my mom or grandma used to do.We are so anxious to be on trend, on point that our anxiety seeps through our pours. If you furiously trying to obtain a beach body, awesome, but how many people are going to notice? How many strangers and why? If you do not want a beach body, then go put on your swim suit and quite bitching about how free you are feeling about your post baby body. See above comments about the person who only eats chicken breasts and drinks water to obtain the beach body. Who is going to care? Why do we care about what strangers think anyways? I am going to drink my wine with another hunk of cheese on gasp! a french baguette, probably followed up by escargot soaked in butter.
I swear on all that is holy, if we can't just relax and accept we are in for a world of hurt. Happiness and acceptance comes through us. Not a specific workout your cousin Vinny told you to do. Not a diet touted to clear up every problem you have ever experienced. The world is best experienced through living and trying. Try everything once, do everything once. Do not let the anxiety of fads or trendy social ventures get to you. If wine gives you a headache, it is simple, just do not drink it. But damn girl, we can still go out for a margarita! (Or tea if guess if you do not drink) If you think someone is watching you, I guarantee they are not. Do not let insecurities rule your world and most of all instead of counting and displaying your blessings, be gracious and grateful. Just do not deprive yourselves of things that give you joy and do not rely on cheap gimmicks to ease your pain. I understand very clearly that the world gray, but there are something that are just black and white. The world is hard enough without us making it harder for ourselves.
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