In this series of posts I’m going to look at the human perspective and ask questions like ‘What does it mean to be human?’ or ‘How can I be a better Human?’ with a little sprinkling of ‘How can I be more comfortable as a human?’
In this mad world we’ve been enduring especially over the last few years people have become more stressed, more anxious about the future with lost livelihoods, jobs or sadly family members life has been tough and a step back to look at life is perhaps something that many will find some kind of sense among the chaos that we’re all having to endure.
Being the sci-fi nut I am I’m going to use a bit of a Sci-Fi slant on this. Think of it as looking down on ourselves using a Total Perspective Vortex or as an Alien looking down from above and offering a few tips that might give a few helpful tips on how to get through life’s little ups and downs.
A Whole World of Ape Men
It can’t have escaped your notice that it’s getting a little crowded on Planet Earth, with now around 8 billion of us all crammed onto this third rock from the sun, spinning helplessly through the cosmic void with no hope of any relief. We’re crammed into buildings and cities and getting ever more squeezed in – Even when Elon Musk decides he’s going to bugger off to Mars there’s not going to be much relief from the perpetual population growth. This is making life for the Man Apes on Earth more fractious and it’s getting harder and harder to get along without getting on each other’s last nerve!
But it doesn’t have to be like this.
As discussed in my previous post on this Man Apes are emotional creatures that do strange things when their emotions are left to run riot, leading them to come up with all kind of conclusions and act in ways that are not only unhelpful but decidedly irrational. Stories of road rage incidents are commonplace, it seems that being in a car and navigating the busy roads leads us to behave in ways well wouldn’t otherwise leading to horrendous acts of aggression. Couple that with how online trolling is now very common and even disagreements between neighbours over quite small things can lead emotionally susceptible Man Apes to behave in ways that are simply irrational.
Let’s see if we can step back and look at the situation from another perspective – after all that’s the key to understanding most of what’s going on – just keep away from the total perspective vortex…
At least for now.
Another Perspective
A big part of the key to thinking about people differently and coming to an understanding of why things happen the way they do is to understand and remember that every single person living on this Earth has their own personal perspective on life that is unique to their own experiences, circumstances and needs in life and just like us – they are just trying to get by.
We’re perhaps all very wrapped up in what’s going on in our lives to consider that different perspective or even to realise that there is another perspective that’s different from ours. Considering this before we jump to the first conclusion that comes into our head can greatly help to come up with a different narrative for the situation and come to a more reasoned response.
We also need to remember that when we deal with people, our responses and feelings towards them area mirror for our feelings and expectations. This can be a real problem, especially for those that we are closest to as we’re projecting onto others our own preconditions, expectations and needs.
For example, when a loved one is being quiet and distant are they ignoring us because we’ve done something wrong? Are they dealing with something quietly and don’t want to bother those around them or simply respectfully giving space?
Remembering that the feelings we get about someone are just a first guess at what is going on can be key, realising that there’s more information to come can help open our minds to the possibilities of what might really be going on.
Being realistic
Unrealistic expectations can be seen best in the romantic relationships of Ape Men, so often in films and fiction finding that one person that’s going to fulfill all their needs and wants is the goal and this translates to real life. This expectation is far from realistic and can be damaging, after all no one wants to be told what’s they’re supposed to be. Not even androids want that these days…
Being realistic in our approach to people and our expectations towards them, especially those that are closest to us can help us to see the beauty in the relationships we have. Having a person to share life’s moments with is really quite an incredible thing. If we fail to see this in our daily interactions becasue we can only see them through a fog of our own needs or desires then we’re going to miss the finer, more nuanced aspects of them and drive them away.
So there it is! I hope that this has been helpful, given new insight into people and how we relate to them. While it’s best not to expect that you’re going to be friends with the 8 billion Man Apes on this planet it might help with the couple of hundred or so that regularly cross your path. If anything it’s best to remember that everyone is struggling in their own way – be kind and not some psycho killer robot.
A Lens to the Sky
I love skylines, so often a lens doesn’t do them justice but sometimes a wide lens and a moody sky can make a beautiful picture. I wish I could mount some of these at times…Enjoy the views!
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A Flavour of Spring
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Inspiration for this came from Derren Brown’s Bootcamp for the Brain Podcast. I hold no copyright to any material from this.
Simon's Space 
Well argued and perceptive Simon. This post was a valuable essay upon the Human Condition, the various factors which make up that condition. Your warnings and solutions are solid and unarguable.
I was attracted by the term ‘Ape Man’; as social groups of chimps can be pretty unpleasant to each other when their paths cross (so can pods of dolphins). There seems to be some danger of inflammablity when mixing the terms Intelligence with Social.
Examine the fossil records counterpointed to the various stages Earth has gone through and it can be seen that failure or inability to adapt leads to a species’ extinction. So it may be with Humanity, there will be a tipping point, too many of us, not being responsible and Earth’s systems will react: Poof! End of us.
Life will go on.
While our relatively short tenure of the planet might not even qualify for a decent fossil record.
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I like this, that’s the thing with our civilization, it might be that in a thousand years there’s no trace that we ever existed.
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A sobering thought indeed. It would seem there should be something left behind after all we’ve done, but there again….
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I will try not to be a psycho killer robot.
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The world will thank you lol
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