Unless you have had the blissful pleasure of being completely off the grid and disconnected from social media for the past few months, you may have noticed a Thing. A Thing happened, and people are talking about the Thing, and the Thing is quite viciously taking over the internet. I've been asked why I don't write about the Thing. After all, the Thing is EVERYTHING right now. Don't I care about the Thing? Where do I stand on the Thing?
First: I care deeply about the Thing. I know what I feel about the Thing. I participated in the Thing's process. I am caught up on the most recent Thing-happenings. I am very firm in my standings on the Thing, thank you for asking.
But, here's the thing: (heh)
THE THING IS NOT THE ONLY THING.
The Thing is very important. Please read about the Thing. Please know where you stand and why you stand there on the Thing. But --
THE THING IS NOT THE ONLY THING.
In cased you missed it, here it is again, in bold:
THE THING IS NOT THE ONLY THING.
"But, I am very passionate about the Thing! We need to talk about the Thing!" Yes, we do. Talking is good. However-- I'm not going to write about it. Not this week, at least. If you want to read about the Thing (which I am passionate about, too), go check out the ~12,478,005 other articles about the Thing.
Instead, I'd rather talk about more important stuff than the Thing. Stuff I personally would rather give my time to, such as:
My Faith. Regardless of how society views it, my faith is a cornerstone of who I am. I'll gladly discuss it with you, but it won't be shaken. I am daily reminded that I need to keep my eyes on Truth, especially when it's this noisy out there.
Reading. I find that I get much more from filling my mind with good stuff that makes it grow instead of the internet junk food I tend to binge on. Currently, I am reading the Federalist Papers, and I find it fascinating. Highly recommended, especially if you'd like some context to this whole democratic republic deal.
Making art. Neil Gaiman makes this suggestion: "Life is sometimes hard. Things go wrong, in life and in love and in business and in friendship and in health and in all the other ways that life can go wrong. And when things get tough, this is what you should do. Make good art." He's pretty cool. I'd take his advice.
People. I have great friends. We don't all agree on everything, but not a single one of those relationships is worth losing over feelings and opinions. Talk to your people. Make friends with those who have something to argue with you over because you see the world differently. It's a good thing.
Real life. Zoom your mental lens in a little, and focus on you. Your home. Your work. Your community. I know that when I zoom in, I realize that they need me so much more than the internet needs me. (And they mean so much more to me, too.)
The list goes on and on. The Thing is not the only thing. Don't let it distract you too much from what really matters to you.
