Every shade and stripe of every possible variety of connection is about wanting, above all else, to be known; for someone else to see as much of you as possible. Shared experience is important. It’s not everything, but it’s something, because nobody wants to be explaining at forty to a hostile audience why they are the way they are, but you don’t want to punch below your weight class, either, and wind up with somebody who only loves you because they don’t know any better—because the day they do know better is the day they’ll walk out the door.
Love your writing! I wanted to share this paragraph by Kahlil Gibran who wrote about our need to share so many years ago(for there is no deeper desire than the desire of being revealed)
In a letter to Mary Haskell penned on November 10, 1911, Gibran writes:
“There is an old Arabic song which begins “Only God and I know what is in my heart” — and today, after rereading your last three letters, I said out loud “Only God and Mary and I know what is in my heart.” I would open my heart and carry it in my hand so that others may know also; for there is no deeper desire than the desire of being revealed. We all want that little light in us to be taken from under the bushel. The first poet must have suffered much when the cave-dwellers laughed at his mad words. He would have given his bow and arrows and lion skin, everything he possessed, just to have his fellow-men know the delight and the passion which the sunset had created in his soul. And yet, is it not this mystic pain — the pain of not being known — that gives birth to art and artists?”
And what if you don't want to be known but you don't have that choice? If you're the son or daughter of some royalty, and paparazzis chase you all the time and gossip about you no matter what you do and no matter how much you try to avoid it? That's why they sometimes allow themself to be interviewed. Not because they want attention, but because they can't avoid it. And if they can't avoid it, at least people can hear their views and opinions from the horses mouth, instead of the tabloids and gossip fanatics. But of course, human nature being what it is, people will accuse them of being self centered with a much-too-high opinion of themselves, since they appear in the interview. You cannot win when you're dealing with people in Twilight Zone.
Sure, as humans we desire connection. But online, as in-person, we must balance the risks with the rewards. The more secure a person is in the physical world connections, the less need to derive identity from the digital masses. Share, not to find your value but to give to others and the pros and cons will balance.
Love your writing! I wanted to share this paragraph by Kahlil Gibran who wrote about our need to share so many years ago(for there is no deeper desire than the desire of being revealed)
In a letter to Mary Haskell penned on November 10, 1911, Gibran writes:
“There is an old Arabic song which begins “Only God and I know what is in my heart” — and today, after rereading your last three letters, I said out loud “Only God and Mary and I know what is in my heart.” I would open my heart and carry it in my hand so that others may know also; for there is no deeper desire than the desire of being revealed. We all want that little light in us to be taken from under the bushel. The first poet must have suffered much when the cave-dwellers laughed at his mad words. He would have given his bow and arrows and lion skin, everything he possessed, just to have his fellow-men know the delight and the passion which the sunset had created in his soul. And yet, is it not this mystic pain — the pain of not being known — that gives birth to art and artists?”
And what if you don't want to be known but you don't have that choice? If you're the son or daughter of some royalty, and paparazzis chase you all the time and gossip about you no matter what you do and no matter how much you try to avoid it? That's why they sometimes allow themself to be interviewed. Not because they want attention, but because they can't avoid it. And if they can't avoid it, at least people can hear their views and opinions from the horses mouth, instead of the tabloids and gossip fanatics. But of course, human nature being what it is, people will accuse them of being self centered with a much-too-high opinion of themselves, since they appear in the interview. You cannot win when you're dealing with people in Twilight Zone.
Sure, as humans we desire connection. But online, as in-person, we must balance the risks with the rewards. The more secure a person is in the physical world connections, the less need to derive identity from the digital masses. Share, not to find your value but to give to others and the pros and cons will balance.