Sunday, February 08, 2009

shame on you!

Let's talk about shame.

I just realised something. When you're a very small kid, when you take your bath or after taking a bath, your mom often tells you to wrap yourself in a towel, or to close the door. You feel nothing, but your mom's panicking and starts saying: 'Shameful, you! It's a shame to be naked like that. Shameful!'

The word 'shame' repeats in a daily basis, until you agree and say 'yeah, it's a shame to do this: i'll cover myself with a towel.'

So, you see, this culture has always been and is being inherited, being passed down to their kids, us, and later, our kids. This 'shame' culture is not only applicable in 'bathing' and 'naked' context, but everything that makes your or my or our people go 'shame on you', over a non-standard act that we do.

To me, this is frustrating.

I don't think this is what we should be proud of. Being set by a standard that is passed down generation by generation, I don't agree when we must be told (or sub-consciously taught) to FEEL in a particular way. To FEEL something we are SUPPOSED to feel, when we actually DON'T feel it.

Ah, you're a puppet on a string, aren't you?

Even more sadly, in the end, we actually feel like feeling it, giving in to whatever standards that are being thrown at us. Feel like that, do like that, move like that, love like that, walk like that, run like that, LIVE LIKE THAT.

Given that we are naturally-unique creative-born individuals that learn to live and survive by experiences, I must say this culture is totally idiotic.

Counting that I've lived most of my lifetime with the standards of everything people are told and have been telling me, I could only say my unique and creative self has been partly paralyzed.

And that's so sad, because when I realize this, I know that there are people out there that can't get what I'm saying and they will live the rest of their lives dictated by standards people make for them, without even realizing it. So sad.

At least, I share this to you, so you have something to think about.



Have a nice eve!

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

yup, bener bgt. gw setuju sama lu. emang kenyataan klo semua yg kita lakukan itu krn dari kecil uda ditanemin di otak kita, kita harus begini, begitu. klo seandainya ditanya, knp km buat begitu? paling2 jawabannya ya krn emang harus gitu, dar kecil diajarin kyk gt... opini gw, mungkin harusnya semua standard2 yg ditanemin ke kita dari kecil cukup untuk jadi guide kita doang, bukan jadi something yg ngontrol hidup kita. kt sbg individual harusnya punya standard masing2, tentunya dgn guide yg uda diajarin ortu. intinya, kita melakukan sesuatu bukan krn itu uda tradisi tapi karna kita rationally tau knp kt hrs kyk gt, bkn krn kita jadi puppet on a string.