Structures of Nothing
In the pathways and destinations of life, we often forget our purpose. Why we persist, what drives us, what we are even in this for. It is easy to state, yet this idea has echoed through countless cultures over centuries, and still, we seem to have nothing. We are here, moving, chasing, caught in the endless pursuit of something.
Cut through life, is it? To pass time easily, or to leave a mark on this world? There is a human desire to be remembered: to feel superior, to simply exist while building a family, gaining the respect of peers, accumulating wealth, anything really, but to avoid confronting what lies directly in front of us.
April 1912
Lewis Hine
We are adding to a world that is deplorable and was never fair to begin with. We created money to control, to make us feel the need to conquer. The system exists in the name of safety and evolution, and we call it fair.
I can learn anything I wish. I can write about inequalities and somehow make something of it. Most of us are fortunate enough to have access to the internet. We say it has made exploration and opportunity easier, but has it? Barriers exist everywhere, we just fail to see them. People die from lack of what should be widely available, while others see and feel only what they choose.
This isn’t to say people don’t care. The fact is, the system is unfair and works for the fortunate, even at the most basic levels. Many times, I have seen people complain about the filthy rich. “Hey, no taxes, must be awesome.” They seem untouchable, but we, too, are untouchable in the eyes of others.
For centuries, we have fought the battles of others, often for the wrong reasons. That seems true even today.
I have never in my life felt hunger, yet I still cannot spare enough for the needy. The world is an unstructured place, one we have given structure to, to feel some semblance of order.
Remember,
We are children of the abyss,
born from shadows and whispers of void,
and one day, we shall sink back into its waiting silence.
Daily Prompts for FreeWriters 🔗
The writing challenges are sponsored by @wakeupkitty Steemit witness @wakucat- Tales & Stories (6 UVF/Steem/SP)
I think whether we find meaning in our lives depends on our culture. And of course, it also has to do with education and character. The society or family you grow up in may believe that you have to be useful, that you have to study, and indeed there will be people who feel they should be remembered, regardless of whether that memory is good or bad. But ultimately, everyone will be forgotten, except those who live on in the minds or hearts of others, and for that, you may not even need to become famous or wealthy. Personally, I have never felt that I needed to search for the purpose of my life; I have no desire to be in the spotlight or to be remembered. Whether or not I have children, whether or not I become a grandparent, it makes no difference to me whatsoever. Incidentally, last night I had a terrible dream that I was about to board a plane, packing my things, and I had a child and also a baby, and then when I was walking down the stairwell, don't ask me where I was going, someone from Child Protection came up to me and dumped a child on me, a newborn baby. The only thing I could think was: how on earth am I supposed to take that child on the plane, because there's nothing to say that it's been entrusted to my care, no name, no court order, nothing at all.
Maybe it's an unfinished task and I'm supposed to find a certain person and take revenge, you never know.
We can indeed write and reconnect thanks to the internet. Where we also have fewer social skills, not to mention honesty. For example, I get tired of all the memes and pep talks that you always have to think positively and be cheerful, as if it's a shame to live, to feel, to feel bad and to say that you think your life has no meaning. Shouldn't the internet open doors? Shouldn't it be possible to find like-minded people? Why not be honest? If you don't feel like hanging out with someone, just remove that person from your circle of friends. There's nothing wrong with that.
I don't know if it's easier to find work via the internet. You'd think so, but of course it depends on the company. I'm seeing more and more companies where you can apply via the internet and fill in a standard form. The question then is: what makes the difference? How can you distinguish yourself if all you do is type in your address and the courses you've taken? You probably won't make any difference, and it'll be a game of chance for a computer to pick and decide who gets the job. And that's why I regularly see the same company or branch advertising for the same employees.
Of course, the internet also has its advantages; you can find a lot of information and look things up quickly, but there is also a lot of incorrect or very old, outdated information out there. This is where AI gets most of its information from. So you always have to ask about the source, the year, and also look for other sources to find the truth, and the truth that changes every few years, as we can see on Wikipedia.
I'm not sure I want to sink back into the waiting silence; hanging around in a void is not really fun. We say that life is nothing more than gaining experience and trying to survive, each in their own way. Life is indeed a battlefield where one fights to win, another to survive, and the next tries to desert.
❤️🍀
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I agree with all of the things you said. Just for instance I think I don't care for anything. But sometimes actions do not align.
I like the internet, because It gives me freedom. I don't have to hustle people, I don't have to do things that never resonated with me.
I liked that you went through every point, tbh I believe I don't deserve that much.
Thank you!
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One of the best things about platforms like this is that we don't have to use a filter like we do on traditional social media. I don’t mean that as an excuse to be nasty without consequences, but rather that we can finally express ourselves in our own way, whether creatively or just practically without the pressure to perform
I don't think you're the only one who says he cares about something. I had a friend who was like that too, and she also said she didn't care about people or care enough to get worked up about anything. I recognise that too, and I see it in people around me. Nevertheless, there will always be people I find interesting because of what they say or do, and that does spark my interest. Whether or not you deserve my response to every point you wrote about is not for you to decide, in my opinion. Let's put it this way: if I find it interesting and want to respond, I will do so. If I don't feel like it, am too tired, don't have time, or it doesn't appeal to me at that moment, then I simply won't respond, or I will respond very briefly. I have to manage my time because I want to do other things and don't live solely on this platform. The internet does indeed offer freedom to many, and it is up to the individual to decide how to deal with that. So there are certainly those who feel that they should not have to hold back on the internet, and you certainly don't have to do that on Steemit because no one will remove you.
Enjoy your day, enjoy your stay!
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I really like your take on this. It feels like society expects us to be on a constant loop of positivity, especially on social media where everyone only posts their highlights. When you actually express yourself in a truthful, practical way, people react as if you’re diseased. It makes me wonder if the world is so blinded by rainbow-colored glasses that they’ve forgotten life isn't all unicorns and sweets. I feel like I was made to feel bad just for refusing to pretend the world is perfect.
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I certainly wouldn't feel bad because of others. Personally, I think we should just show ourselves as we are and how we feel, because that's how we learn. Why always keep up appearances and pretend that everything is hunky-dory? How can you teach your children to deal with sadness, depression, setbacks and rejection if, as a parent, you always gloss over these things and pretend they don't exist? Young children are very sensitive to their parents' moods, so there is no need to keep up appearances. If they don't feel like joining in, they will simply walk away and play on their own. What is the point of having friends if you always have to be cheerful and then go home and cry your eyes out, feeling incredibly lonely? What's the point of listening to idiots talking about positive thinking and looking at how bad others have it to supposedly cheer yourself up, posting it on the internet when in reality you feel deeply unhappy? How on earth are you supposed to vent, to show how you really feel, if it's forbidden, if you're not allowed to tell the truth, if you're labelled a whiner and a crybaby?
I don't believe that you are less strong, man or woman, if you do express your feelings. Nor do I think that you should pretend to be fine for the sake of so-called protection. This is about you, these are your feelings and they count just as much as those of others. Anyone who doesn't want to be confronted with this, who doesn't want to hear or see it, can just leave. What I also dislike are those people who immediately think they have to come up with all kinds of tips on how to make you feel better. Tips that never work. People don't all say the same thing, and processing something takes time. The soul or the spirit, whatever you want to call it, has no concept of time; that's something else that people impose. I also don't think friends are friends if they think you should be happier and immediately label everything you say as stupid or negative. There's also such a thing as realism, and the first step is to recognise that it exists. To do that, you have to try to express your feelings and then take a somewhat sober look at everything to weigh it up. All those so-called positive slogans are just a way of avoiding having to face up to how someone else or you yourself are really doing.
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Most of the time, we just need a listening ear and a shoulder to cry on. Some people feel they have to say something, as if we should just dump our sadness and cheer up instantly, which is always easier said than done.
I remember when a close friend was going through a hard time; we all just went to his house to be with him. We didn't say, 'I know you're sad, cheer up!'
We just held the space. We did whatever he wanted to do, like playing games or just hanging out.
I think it's enough to know that someone is there, and sooner or later, the truth will come out. Often, it's true that you want to be heard, and then distraction plays a big role. Just sitting in a corner crying or lying in bed doesn't usually make the situation any better, and lying in bed only works if you are actually able to sleep and somehow process what's going on.
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People need time to process things
Haha, I love how you put that. That kind of talk actually makes people feel worse because it would frame ourselves as inadequate
But the sad thing is that this is the situation where people put on a front for the internet and act happy and give so-called pep talks, while in reality they are sitting alone at home feeling miserable and crying their eyes out, and then I think, how are you supposed to find friends or someone who will listen to you if you always put on a front? And then sooner or later it goes wrong, everyone attempts suicide, and then you get the family and the whole neighbourhood saying: how is that possible, he was fine, always so cheerful, always this, always that. I find it inconceivable that family or friends would not notice that someone is not doing well. I think you can feel or notice it because the atmosphere changes. It doesn't mean you're always able to respond to it, but it's noticeable nonetheless. So I would definitely not be one of those people who say afterwards: how strange, he was such a sweet, easy-going, cheerful person, blah blah blah.
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I think most people are just too selfish to look past their own 'charmed' lives. They feign ignorance and then they feign shock when the worst happens.
There's always some telling signs
The system is rigged. It was designed by those in power specifically to benefit themselves.
We as ordinary people forget that, power is something that corrupts.