It has been a long time since I have tried a freewrite, but I ended up doing one because I didn't feel like finishing any of my other articles today, so I am doing something I used to do as a creativity exercise, many moons ago... and in many ways similar to the "freewrite" sessions I often see here on Steemit, hosted by @mariannewest.
So tip of the hat to Marianne for offering an indirect inspiration today!
Turning a different leaf...
My own "internal rules" are pretty simple:
Nab a single word that's in the forefront of your thoughts and write about it for ten minutes — hey, I type slowly! In this case, the word was "disgusted."
Only formatting and typo correction has been added.
On Your Marks! Get Set! Type!
Sometimes, I just get mildly disgusted with humanity.
I get disgusted with the violence, with the selfishness, with the carelessness and with the lack of awareness of one's surroundings.
A sad story: In Pakistan, an innocent family is arbitrarily gunned to death on suspicion of being "terrorists."
I'm disgusted because they were gunned down, and I am disgusted because there even are terrorists.
I know, I know... some are already thinking "Easy for you to say, sitting there in your safe world with your First World Problems!"
Sorry, you're missing the point.
I'm disgusted because the world is reactive, not inquisitive.
I don't get the mindset of people who kill, maim, torture and inflict pain.
I don't get kids who pull the legs off spiders, or the wings off butterflies.
I don't get bullies who enjoy watching others squirm.
I don't get adults who make sport out of abusing and bullying each other.
The Peaceful Path
Open Letter to an Imaginary — But Very Real — Human I Have "Met" too Many Times
So there's a community kitchen where volunteers cook food for a greater struggling community.
And you're thinking "I wonder what would happen if we set it on fire!"
I can tell you what will "happen."
The kitchen will burn down. People will get hurt. Resources and food will be lost. Many in the community will now starve, because they have no place to get food.
Why would anyone want to DO that?
"I just wanted to see what would HAPPEN!!"
What dark corner of the gene pool are you even FROM, to have something like that go through your head?
Meanwhile, what the frak part of the gene pool am I from, that it's completely unfathomable to me to even have such thoughts, let alone act on them... with complete disregard (or is it "blatant unawareness?") for anything other than your own sense of curiosity?
And what I really don't get is that many would simply shrug and insist "That's just pretty normal human behavior..."
Not normal in the gene pool I climbed out of... Or is it?
Of course, that's a fictitious dialogue. But this shit happens all the time, in different parts of the world.
Maybe the lesson here is that these incidents invite me to check myself.
And... I'm out of time.
A rare clear winter afternoon, in the Pacific Northwest
I realize this is not my normal style of post, but with a busy day of doing other stuff, I needed to break the usual routine. It was also a good exercise, because it forced me out of my usual "comfort zone," which involved gathering ideas and carefully assembling a post over several hours.
Thanks for reading!
How about YOU? Have you ever tried a "Freewrite?" Is it something you'd do, if you felt stuck for what to write? Meanwhile, are there aspects of humanity — that seems braodly accepted — that baffle you? Leave a comment-- share your experiences-- be part of the conversation!
(As usual, all text and images by the author, unless otherwise credited. This is original content, created expressly for Steemit)
Created at 190122 19:14 PST
0859
I have never tried free write, but it does sound pretty good especially when you are stuck on what to write.
To tell you the truth, I am ashamed of the world we live in. I can't believe how people will do anything for money including killing, stealing, lying etc.
Seems like no one trust no one and I feel like that sometimes too because of how people treat me. I feel like I can only trust few people and that is so sad. It is sad because sometimes we are affraid to help people because we don't know if they are good or bad people (talking about strangers).
I feel like there is so little love out there and so much judgment, criticism, violence which I will never understand and like you said it seem the norm right now in this world, which is heartbreaking.
Thank you for this awesome freewrite @denmarkguy
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well, you said these things happen all the time... A few years back when the beast of Fort McMuray fires were ravaging, the son of a firefighter who was also a firefighter or volunteer lit a wooden trestle bridge (also a historical site) on fire in the middle of a dry summer. When asked why he did it, so he could be seen as the town hero when he put it out except the fire got out of control for a while and burned the whole thing down. I believe it was the last operational one left in Canada.
This is not fictional. What are people thinking these days? I can feel your frustrations with humanity.
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So, it sounds like you're saying, @denmarkguy, that for all our enlightenment, our improved living conditions (in most of the world), our advancements in technology, our progressive social moors, our more open way of viewing the world and what truly constitutes what, that there's still at least a lingering segment of humanity, if not actually pervasive throughout the whole of it, that just refuses to evolve, but would rather wallow in the cranial pathways of the earliest Cro Magnon, if not stunted with the neural capacity of the Neanderthal?
In some parts of this world, some folks are living exactly the way they've lived for hundreds, if not thousands of years. Expecting much out of them at this point is probably an exercise in futility. For the rest of us, though, there probably aren't any excuses, which only exacerbates the situation.
I've often wondered if I really am the father of my youngest son, simply because he will come up with things, as you mentioned, I never think of. Not even when I was his age. For good or ill, that's the way it is. Fortunately, he doesn't believe or act on most of what comes out of his mouth, so there's at least that. :)
Guess I'm here to commiserate. You know more than I do about human behavior and the human condition, and what motivates people. Greed seems to be one, power and pride are others, but fear and hate, those seem to be the ones that propel people into dire acts, along with fanaticism, which has a component of inevitability (so why fight it) and being in the right, when most of the outside world believes the opposite.
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It's easy to feel this way... I feel it often as well. The human condition seems to be one of contradictions. I'm afraid that are technology has outpaced our evolution. You mention people doing bad things, but we now have companies (collectively a bunch of people) doing things that are just as bad if not worse., since they affect far more people. However, there are also individuals and groups who do immense good. There are even small companies who are amazingly conscious. Perhaps even mid-size companies, such as Martin Guitars, who try to do the right thing. On the balance at this point, the bad seems to be winning out. I hope we reach a turning point soon, because I am very concerned about humanity's future.
Proud member of #powerhousecreatives
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We’re fucked up, because we human beings think with emotion and less with reason or logic. Which is why we are at this point in time.
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