Humanity

I get pretty down on people and the world. Working in customer service as I do I get to see the lazy, stupid side of civilization. Every day I'm asked at least one question which makes me wonder how that person even survived to the age that they've acquired. What I realized today that I don't do often enough is to simply submerge myself in people in their natural habitat.

The only real time I have interaction with people is almost always in a commercial setting. Movie theaters, restaurants, department stores, places where people have a purpose. The problem with this is that we all have different ways of getting the things that we desire. Some people are forceful and yell and scream if they don't get there way, embarrassing their families by screaming until they are red in the face, forehead vein throbbing. Some people go the route of the 80's movie best friend who is in love with protagonist female, just be kind and patient and all good things will come to you of their own accord. The juxtaposition of these various styles in any given setting is a tragedy. The culprit: We act our own certain way because we believe it is the best way to accomplish our goal. Nobody does anything that they think is wrong or incorrect, you genuinely believe that how you act is the best way to act. But people who try different methods are idiots. And bastards. Take the screaming gentleman from earlier. If I see this man I get filled up with rage and go red in the face myself. I wonder what on this earth makes him think that he is better than the person he is yelling at to talk to them in such a way. But I am a person who believes that the best way to get what you want is to be honest and treat others with respect. If throbbing forehead vein guy saw me in a similar situation he would also think "What an idiot, he's never going to get what he wants," just like I do.

Walking in Balboa Park today nobody wanted anything from one another. It was a beautiful day in San Diego and tons of people were simply out enjoying the weather. Being Easter there was a church group reading Bible passages out loud. It wasn't to recruit followers, it wasn't to denounce homosexuality or Muslims or abortion, it was just what they saw fit to do on this day. Across from them were Syrian-Americans trying to raise awareness of the forceful suppression of freedom in that country. There were a group of Muslims trying to use Easter as an olive branch to show Christians that they have nothing against Jesus at all. There were Tarot readers and mimes, a violinist, balloon artists. The lady raising awareness for San Diego Bird Rescue had quite the crowd. Yet nobody seemed to want anything. The lone group of Christians trying to sell their version of Jesus as superior to other Jesii found few interested in being lectured about God when it was quite obvious that we were all in the presence of the one of our choosing. Even the peddlers of wares seemed to be following the Alcoholics Anonymous ideal of attraction over promotion. Even the children had the sense that today was somehow different as their volume dials were all set to an acceptable level, including the one wading through the fountain, his father following his progress, a look of pride in the adventurousness of his mini-me.

And in that moment I again felt the earth's heartbeat. That imperceptible rhythm that keeps us from strangling each other in restaurants. The rhythm that instills in us the idea that those movie scenes of impending global apocalypse where everybody comes together in peace and love might not be total bullshit. The sun grandstanded a bit with a 360 degree rainbow while the earth continued breathing in and out.