Sunday, June 24, 2012

What’s wrong?

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It is an invasive question, but it is the major subject we all talk about.

What brought this on? Well, there is this soap opera that comes on the same time as I have lunch. Yes, I know, don’t get on my case. I couldn’t even tell you the names of the characters it just plays in the background. The acting is slow and the personalities are adequate for daytime television but I noticed to continue the bizarre plots, each character seems to be having problems and all the other’s want to know what it is.

Then you start thinking and that brings trouble.

When meeting people and we get by the usual greetings and small talk about family and latest purchases, we start to dig into “what’s wrong”.

Problems with the house or getting the car repaired or trouble with the kids even if you can relate problems at work. We love this stuff.

Yes, we love to complain and everyone else seems to like to listen and add his or her own views on a problem. Why do we do that?

It must be human nature to want to find out about others problems. Maybe it makes us feel better that it is not our problem? Maybe it is sharing bad experiences? Maybe it is offering solutions that might solve a friend’s troubles? Maybe we just need the comfort of others during stressful experiences? Maybe someone will come up with a worst problem and that will make us feel better? Maybe we can just shock others with what is unimaginable because they do not know our reality?

So what’s your problem?


1 comment:

TripleG said...

It's all of the above. Can you imagine the gossip in an isolated village where the only things that happen are the mundane little bumps in other people's lives? One fellow I ran into in New Cumberland the other day said, "Everyone knows everyone else's business." Either it's outrage about what's on the news that will never really affect us, or it's the stories that are more engaging that are both true (or at least are purported to be) and local.
Even the cats and dogs sniff everything to find out what has been going on and who's been where. That's why life is better than being a rock.