What does it mean to live a life without the shades of gray?

The good is good.

And the bad is bad.

What is wrong with that?

More than you would think. If the good is good and the bad is bad and there is nothing in between that means the things that are more along the lines of OK are just as bad as the bad things. So, in essence, if it can’t automatically be labeled as good, I will probably perceive it as bad.

This thought pattern often lends itself well to negative emotions, sadness, anger, and depression.

You may ask…

If you know that you do this, why don’t you just stop?

I can just stop thinking in black in white as easily as you can stop your urges to go to the bathroom.

Thinking in black and white has been something that I have done since I can remember. It’s automatic. It’s not just something that I can change on a whim, although most of the time I really wish I could.

In my mind…

Black:

There is no space between

What should and shouldn’t hurt

My sadness may seem

Ridiculous but for what its worth

It’s not something I choose

Rather, the way I see

Bad is bad

To me

And

When it’s dark

It’s black I see

White:

There is no space between

What should and shouldn’t hurt

My random bursts of energy

May seem annoying

But for what it’s worth

It’s not something I choose

Rather, the way I see

Good is good

To me

And

When it’s light

It’s white I see

In my mind, I’m seeing things the way they are and I’m sorry that to you some of the things I view as catastrophic may be no big deal but you aren’t seeing the world through my eyes so how can you be the judge of the way that I feel?

So, please be patient with me and my views of the world. If I experienced things in all of the different shades that you do I wouldn’t have this problem but since I struggle to see the difference between not so good and bad I spend most of my life in what will look like a whirlwind of negative experience we will leave it at that.