I have no recollection of why I got a Facebook in the first place, but as time has gone by, I've used it as a medium to express myself in certain aspects of life. That isn't unique to anyone, because everyone, more or less, uses it for similar, if not identical, reason. I will sometimes sit 10-15 minutes in front of my computer thinking of how to properly word a "status update" so that it is impactful, often open ended, and above all, worth while. I sometimes post things of a silly nature, true to who I am, but as I see many people are able to express themselves in a silly nature, I see it as an obligation to show a more intellectual (if you would consider it that) nature to my posts - not always because I have superior knowledge, but because I am trying to illicit a reaction in other people's minds to enter a dialogue with me and others in hopes to stretch our minds a bit. I've recently held the belief that discussion can really further a person's intellectual worth along with their interest as a person. We seem, often, to be so numb to the idea of growth and development from a personal nature - meaning, not from schooling or practical application, but rather, growing into oneself by opening ourselves to mediums of communication and inevitably, challenges. The more we open avenues of communication to things that we love to discuss, the more enriched we can become. While many people are extremely proficient at gossip and although rarely admit it, they've come to enjoy it; it seems our ability to delve into the depths of a good fireside discussion have become foreign to us. The ability to appreciate the presence of a mind with unique thoughts to one's own is something we should not take for granted. While others don't seem to care for it much, I find that I crave for it so much that it angers me to see potential golden conversations thrown away by the smallest intrusions. I have had the privilege to sit down with a small assortment of people and enjoy losing ourselves, together, in the passions of our own minds. These moments come only a few times a year, if that, and I find myself noticing when they seem to be coming to fruition. As I notice, I also find myself getting desperate to encourage the conversation along its path, but often am superseded by the entrance of "distractions" (food, people not involved in the conversation changing the subject, TV, among many other things). As this is the case, it is almost impossible to salvage the conversation unless the other conversationalist(s) also feel the glee from conversation with more merit than their daily talks ("How was your day?", "What did you do today?", "Where should we eat?") and push the conversation forward regardless of distractions (extremely rare for this to happen).
In essence, my ideal is this: A room of a few people (I'm not particular about the number) sitting or standing with all their electronics off (or an EMP goes off, your choice) and readily hungry to listen and passionate to express their views. I don't give a rat's ass if we get anywhere with our conclusions, but the act of listening and engaging in challenging exchange of thoughts is riveting, constructive in its own right, and fun for many people, regardless of if they notice it now or not (which, can be ascertained, or seemingly so, by the length of each one of these sessions).
I just came to a realization... maybe I got my psychology degree, because I craved the hour long discussions of things that matter with a person, uninterrupted by "other things". That's a romantic possibility. I also just realized that I was going somewhere completely differently with this post and my mind zipped me in this direction... I was going to talk about Facebook posts and the nature of my "commenting", but I guess I had something more pressing to discuss, ha! Very cool.
Listening to: Above & Beyond, "A Thing Called Love"
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