ego te provoco

Thou shalt listen, mark, inwardly digest and obey all instructions given by thine medical team. Patient, thou knowest nothing. and thou art not God. Therefore, when thou hast an idea, and it conflicts with the detailed, specific instructions provided by the demi-god who is the medical professional, thine idea will be put on ye heap of rubbish, there to be incinerated, and thou shalt obey. Else thou wilt be deservedly suffering, and shalt get no sympathy. Because fools deserve their misery!  I thought that I knew better than my team, and chose to do stuff that's resulted in me being in agony again today. I am, rightly. paying for it, and now I'm done with my (scheduled) tests today, I returned home and crawled into bed and cursed my stubbornness and gross stupidity.

As an aside, it was very amusing at the CT are. I had started writing some of this while waiting, and the RN passed by and saw me. She was so excited that she called the technician, the other nurse and the poster over so I could show how I used the Apple pencil to write the entry and have it convert to text. I wonder if I can get a commission from apple for promoting their tools?

I was reminded that each of us is the hero in our own story, but we may also be the villain in someone else's. It's difficult to imagine that the same person could have such different roles for doing the same things, isn't it? But then, whether someone is a "freedom fighter" or a "resistance fighter" versus a "terrorist" or "anarchist" depends on who's telling the story! Fictionally, in Star Wars, the Empire was evil, and our brave Rebel Alliance won against them. But from the point of view of the Empire, and its allies. they were terrorists who needed to be crushed... and in our current society, we have groups who cast themselves as an intrepid band fighting back against evil powers oppressing society.

So who's who? are the "bleeding heart snowflake socialists" the ones who are the terrorists? According to some they only want to. destroy the country and erase all of history. They are trying to rewrite everything; seeing racism everywhere.  Or is it the hidebound, dyed- in-the-wool Nazis who refuse to change and who see anything new on a threat?  Or could it be that our Labels make it impossible to really know?  Have you ever noticed how people react to change? To me they fall into a few clear categories.

1.  We love changes!

This group is all gung-ho for new things. They push for change, and sometimes they urge changes that are deeply uncomfortable or controversial, and they seem to advocate all kinds of causes.

2. Change is needed

This group will change when the need is clear. They aren't at the forefront of change but they read the signs around them and will change before it's forced on them.

3. It was good enough for our parents

They will superficially change under great duress after it's mandated or otherwise enforced any opportunity to change back, though, is seized with enthusiasm.

Personally I tend to identify as a part of. the second group for most things. I'm fairly comfortable with change although as I age I'm more likely  to be complacent and to resist change that doesn’t seem necessary. I think that the majority of us are like that.

Of the groups on the edges, though, the first is disruptive and they seem to spend most of their time explaining their latest catch phrase. If the cause is non-controversial, it will fizzle out, but in the

meanwhile it causes a lot of discussion. Some examples include "Occupy Wall Street" ; "Defund the police,"  among a host of others.

The last group spends most of its time rallying against the others. They hark back to halcyon days that never existed talking about them in the same hushed tones that they use in church. They dismiss any proposed changes as "nonsense" and "go against natural law" or are "contrary to God's plan" They seem, for some reason to have more conspiracy theories than any other group.

That’s an oversimplification and gross generalization of a complex issue. But as I've watched things unfold, especially in the last couple of years, I'm seeing these groups shaping. I mean, it's easy and obvious to draw parallels with left- rs. right- leaning politics, particularly with respect to topics like racism; LGBTQ + issues; climate change etc. To a lesser extent, it's also possible to identify pro-and anti-vaccination groups. It's nor a perfect analogy, unfortunately.

It would be easy if we could just label people with "group 1"; "group 2" or "group 3" so we could just use a checklist to determine how to react. But it's real life. We need to love our enemies, and our friends. So we need to listen to their opinions, gently connect those who are wrong, and then limit the negative influences that enter our lives.

How to know who is wrong? Easy. If someone adopts a position that doesn't align with the established knowledge and yet, they disregard that. If someone says "do your own research"-it's usually a sign that they've fallen into the trap that there's a conspiracy. Finally, if someone calls you "sheep" then they certainly need help. If they insist on going against reality, then you may need to limit interactions.

If you are the one who goes against reality, then please seek professional help! You are causing extreme distress to your family and friends. That's not a good thing, so address that!

This is extremely long, I apologize. The next will be shorter and lighter. Good night!