Understanding

There are certain things us people cannot possibly understand. However, we keep trying. We want to understand, we crave it as we crave food. The human mind is significant in that way. Some aspects of life we just cannot seem to leave untouched and unspoken for. People express themselves in different ways. Some like to use words, others use noticeable facial expressions, some like to use body language. From time to time, it also occurs that some people cannot or perhaps will not allow their expressions to show. That is when you have to dig deeper. To understand a person without them showing or telling can be a complicated matter. We have so many useful resources available; why not use them?

A huge resource as well as a helping tool in today’s society is the widespread technology, social media and internet. The social media for instance. There are plenty of disgraceful things to say about it, but it in some odd way it has somehow become a part of an everyday circle of life. I think there is truly something extraordinary to be able to chat with a person on Facebook, while this person is located in a completely different continent, country and time zone. Then there’s Instagram, where you can follow your celebrity idol, or your friends, and even share your own taken photographs. Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr and so on are communities. These are worldwide communities, and you can be a part of them.

A few weeks ago, we watched a movie in our class called Disconnect. The movie really touched me with its different stories. The individuals in this movie had to face facts about how the internet affects people in various ways and that sometimes it gets out of hand. The internet is a powerful source and if you mess with it in the wrong way, it could end badly. And for some of these people, unfortunately it did.  

This was mostly because they didn’t understand each other, and therefor reached out to others online struggling with the same issues as they were. They felt compatible to that person because that person understood. But the internet is a dangerous place for naïve people. They are fooled and played as easy as a mouse is lured into a mice trap.  One has to be careful as for who one choose to trust.

When it comes to the understanding-part, I am torn. Everyone wants to be understood and accepted, but at the same time understand other human beings. It’s natural, it’s the way of life. However, why use the internet in the process. Can’t we just talk and communicate in real life. We wouldn’t have to be misled and hurt on the internet. People are the nicest when you can see their eyes and faces, and their not hiding behind a computer screen like a coward. If they saw the damages they impose on others, they would understand too.  

“Any fool can know. The point is to understand.” 

― Albert Einstein