Monday Musings: What Does it REALLY Mean to be "Different?"

There are a lot of times when we think about somebody, or we observe somebody go about their life and declare to ourselves — or maybe even out in public — that "they're a little bit different."

I bring this up as I have often been someone thought to be a little bit different.

But what does it really mean to be "different?" And how does it feel to be different if you're the one who's different, in some context? And why do we even need to label people as different just because they're not part of the majority?

If I have to be completely honest, I suppose I have always been different, myself, and sometimes I find myself wondering what it is about me that makes people think that I am no the same as everyone else.

Does it just make people nervous to not be able to conveniently "categorize" a person?

I do recognize that I've lived a life that is perhaps not the same as what most people experience, simply because we lived in many different countries when I was a kid and I grew up pretty much all over the world. And not everybody gets to do that. Does that really make me different, as a human being?

But those are only superficial things. It has no bearing on my personality and my behavior. But, then again...

More often than not what I am regarded as "different" about is the fact that I seldom willingly "take sides" in arguments and instead tend to look for what I've come to think of as "the third option," whenever something is going on that leads to heated debate.

I'm not comfortable with the idea that there has to be winners and losers.

Consequently, I'm not always categorically "for" something and I also not "against" something... I'm looking for an alternative to being for or against. Where is the compromise? Where is the place where we can meet and everybody can have part of the pie they so desperately want?

Life is often ironic, in the sense that so many people give lip service to the idea that they want things like world peace and peaceful resolutions to situations, and yet they are not open to looking for multiple alternative options... they often insist that "we have it my way or we lose!"

Personally, I think such approaches are not actual "solutions," because they have their roots in the basic notion that we live in a world of scarcity, in which conceding anything is perceived as a loss, rather than the potential for a "win/win" outcome.

And that's rather sad. And it's also rather sad how often I've been told that I am "wasting my time" by insisting there has to be a better solution that doesn't result in outright "winners" and "losers."

Maybe I'm ignoring the bloody history of the human species; I guess I just feel that we should try to do better. and maybe that's what makes me a little bit different!

Thanks for reading, and have a great remainder of your week!

How about you? Have you ever been called "different?" Or do you tend to blend into the crowd pretty well? Leave a comment if you feel so inclined — share your experiences — be part of the conversation!

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Created at 2023.08.15 01:13 PDT
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