Duplicity

Canadians are politically correct, polite and duplicitous.

I am Canadian.

I had a conversation with a friend from Holland, who now lives here in Canada and who is also a Princess Diana look a like, the other day about how strange it seems to her that we have been taught to cover what we really think and feel with the blanket of political correctness. In my experience with Dutch people, they are direct, honest and don't beat around the bush. If something's on their mind, they say it and get it out there. THIS is refreshing to me! I can see how crazy we, Canadians, must seem to them. At the risk of possibly offending we have become dishonest. Was that the intention of playing nice? Dishonesty? We become different people when in different environments. Master chameleons, blending in instead of standing up for what we think, feel, believe, and are passionate about. The result? Duplicity and mediocrity. People who are different or who approach life honestly, with real emotion and passion, in our minds are weird.

Last night I went for a walk with my kids. After taking only a few steps I had a small stone in my left shoe. I left it there on purpose. Why, you might ask? Not because I enjoy self-inflicted pain or because I thought it may be an enjoyable experience to walk a mile down the road with a rock in my shoe. I did it to feel. Feel something....anything.

Discomfort.

Pain.

Annoyance.

Frustration.

Distraction.

I think one of the results of our duplicity is that we have become numb to what pain feels like and when we feel even the slightest hint of  it, we shut it down and we fill that space where pain is supposed to be felt with things like food, shopping, drugs, entertainment, diets, alcohol, exercise programs, achievements, possessions, travel, and money. Pain must be avoided at all costs. We cannot be honest about either our pain or the ways we numb it because there are not to many people out there that will listen or care. Real people have real pain because that's real life. Pain is shocking and messy. If we had the freedom to let out the hurt, the doubts, the disappointments, the anguish of life's real problems without judgement, life would have hope for a lot more people. You have pain. Can you feel it? Can you be honest about it? Every person you know has pain. Can you listen to it without judgement? Can you encourage them to feel it?

If you can't, put a stone in your shoe and walk.