Where Does My Blog Get It’s Name?

Where did my blog get it’s name? I have a desire to inspire compassion and empathy to people in a world where we have become so divided and hostile towards each other. My passion is writing, it’s my tool. This is me being brave enough to know I can make a difference to someone, somewhere.

The birth of internet has completely revolutionized the social dynamics of humanity. Where there was once privacy, space and time, we have become so digitally connected that we have the ability to access people instantly. A post or tweet can reach media, celebrity and even royalty. Suddenly nobody is untouchable, regardless of their location or status.

We are able to follow or capture the attention of a following through our cell phone. The result has left our species, our families, our children with a prescribed daily dose of instant gratification. The mental health crisis that has developed as a result is changing the way we all interact with one another.

Unfortunately, the convenience of digital communication will never convey a message like one that is delivered looking into the eyes of another person. Our truth can be lost in translation with the absence of tone, sarcasm and body language.

The omission of the human interaction has left us all seriously lacking in empathy.  Empathic is defined as “showing an ability to understand and share the feelings of another”. Beyond not understanding the feelings of another, many people lack the desire to even want to understand. In our never-ending quest to be unique, we’ve depleted our empathy by focusing on our differences rather than what unites us.

The definition of jungle is “a situation or place of bewildering complexity or brutal competitiveness. A place of ruthless struggle for survival”.  Sound familiar? It can resemble a neighborhood, city or country. When you read it, can you see how savage we’ve all become? We may not hunt each other in the literal sense but the hostility of our society will chew you up and spit you out in seconds.

We have become so obsessed with the perfect pose, picture and filter that we’ve lost our authentic selves along the way. We consume in a constant pursuit of happiness but what we really all need is joy. Chasing happiness is like chasing the end of a rainbow, it will always allude you. Joy is what we feel in sharing our lives with the people we love. What a beautiful world it would be to experience the true uniqueness in each other without the judgement of acceptability.

It is my hope that we learn to choose compassion and understanding. That we can connect through the experiences we have in common and that we know we are not alone. We are humans, none of us has it all figured out and we certainly deserve to falter with grace.

Be Kind. For everyone you meet is fighting a battle you know nothing about.