Happy Easter, Religious Stuff, Instagram and Facebook.
I really feel like I need to write today. Happy Easter. Quite unexpectedly observing all of the online antics during the easter weekend has left me confused and angry. Probably for a few reasons. A person I look up to once told me some advice that has been given to many people many times before, and that was don't let other people control the way you feel. You're the one that allows people to affect you. Only you have control over your emotions. Well that's all well and good, but in actuality the things other people do DO have the ability to irritate me. And telling me not to allow other people to affect the way I feel is like telling me to close my eyes and just continue going on with my week like nothing has changed. Do they live in real life?
I think this is the first time I have actually paid any attention to the social medias during easter time, because is it just me? Or is most of the stuff that people say and do idiotic?
So on the one hand I have my parents sending me emails to think of the savior at this time of year and that is nice. Then there are people on instagram posting pictures of John 20, and that is sortof nice. Not my cup of tea, but I understand the sentiment. Then there is the SLOUGH of people posting pictures of them outside, in their sunday best doing various things. Just standing there, going to church, searching for easter eggs...etc. Then there are a TON. I mean a ton of people...these are grown ass human beings...that are posting pictures of THEIR easter baskets, full of chocolate, jewelry, a new iphone (yeah, saw that) and other nonsense.
I guess I'm just confused. I don't get it. When I was little I got it, right up until the age of about 13 or 14. Easter=chocolate. Pretty much the bottom line. I was stoked. After 14, 15, maybe 16, I'm not sure when exactly I didn't really get the whole searching for an easter basket. Seemed like it was something little kids got excited about. And I'll probably do it for my little kids someday too. But aaaaaalll the grownups? Just grownups? Is it really that fun? Is easter really a holiday? Something to get excited about?
You see, I've always been fascinated by the reasons that people do the things that they do and in the past couple years I've really began to look at the "why" of the things that we do. Specifically: religious things. There are a number of reasons that I've observed, but I feel that the big reason, numero uno, is not because you believe in it, but because it makes you feel good. It makes your world make sense. I have heard people use that reasoning that because it makes them feel good they know it is something they can believe in (a lot of them use the wording that they believe that it is "true." I won't even try to explain how vague a word like true is here, so for their sake and for the sake of having some writing that makes a little sense...I will just stick to saying that they can "believe in it.") Is that a good reason to believe in something? Because it gives you a good feeling? There are a lot of things that people do that make them feel good. I'm not ruling that out but if you use that as a basis for your belief then you have to accept that people who believe something different than you that makes them feel good have every right to that belief. That poses a huge problem because if you really believe in your religion you believe that it is the only way and everyone else just isn't going to make it to the same place you're shooting for after you die. I think that right there is my problem with religion and just why I'm choosing to not be associated with it right now. Because religions, specifically fairly organized religions like catholicism (and all the protestant sects), Mormonism, Jehovas Witnesses, Islam, Born again Christians,etc all believe that they have the right one and everyone else can't truly be happy until they are doing whatever it is they are doing in THEIR specific church.
[Just so you know, if you are reading this this is for me to work through my thoughts.....I'm not looking for a critique. I mean, feel free, but I won't pay attention to you. This is just my stream of consciousness. I am fully aware that most of it is ridiculous rambling]
You see, religion isn't easy. At least my religion wasn't. There were a lot of social expectations, tons of guilt, odd rituals (I'm not talking about religious rituals, because those are sacred to people and I respect that. I'm talking about social rituals that occur as people grow up, get married, move through their lives in the church) and if the only reason I see people doing things because it brings them happiness (the happiness that their religion defines as happiness, not necessarily the human emotion of happiness) then I believe that there are other things that one can do, and still achieve happiness. Maybe I'm being lazy and trying to get the prize without the sacrifice and one day I'll look back on this and say "dude you were just being really selfish" and that may be true but I guess we go through learning experiences for a reason. Anyways, I feel as though I'm kicking the proverbial dead horse.
Perhaps I just haven't had an easter in so long that it has lost all it's meaning to me. I honestly can't remember the last easter I had. Its been more than 3 years at least. Thats probably it. I've just lost it and all these other people who have normal lives still have it. I haven't been home for the last three easters. Yesterday I ate a turkish kebab and today I ate a bowl of plain rice and some pickles. Woohoo....happy easter. I haven't been home for most of anything. Christmas but thats about it. Maybe I'm just jealous of all these people who actually do stuff for things and it's important to them. Perhaps thats it. I'm going to go with that and say yes. BUT....that doesn't excuse the stupid crap I see posted everywhere.
SIDE NOTE: Is it irresponsable to shut off your facebook? Is it? Do I actually use it? I sort of don't think I do. I mean stuff does happen there, and it's like a little universe. An online semi-reality, but is it so bad if that reality ceases to exist?
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