The Pain of Indifference
I was thinking about a friend of mine this morning when I was getting ready to write my piece today. This friend of mine has a difficult relationship with his family yet he is kept in the “loop” as it were. He sees how his family are getting on with their lives and how they are going in new directions with children and career and relationships. THe missing factor, however, is him. He seems to not be involved or invited to be part of the lives of his family, but rather the have his nose pressed up on the metaphoric window that is social media.
I mention this friend today because it belies an issue that we as a society need to address. Hurting someone does not require conscious action and decision, rather hurt can be inflicted by indifference. We tend to live our lives with very little concern or compassion for those around us, sometimes even those closest to us. It is very important that as human beings we ensure that not only should our actions be tempered not to hurt people, but also our inaction should be tempered too. The recent covereage of mental health issues in a frank open way is one such example of how to show we care rather than to ignore it with sociological indifference. So if you have not spoken to someone you love recently, why not pick up the phone or send an email, I am sure that this person would be happy to be included in your thoughts for today.
