Beauty And Depression

[Mary+Immaculate<3]

Hey y'all, what do you think about this?

Young adults constantly yearn to have meaning, to discover purpose for their surroundings. Beauty is such an attractive thing to people, it draws them in and fascinates them. Why are suicide and depression numbers so high right now? People aren't given opportunity to experience beauty in a stress-free environment.
Kids are shoved into a concrete-block building which contains overly-bright lighting and repugnant architecture and decor for 7-8 hours a day so they can receive a mediocre education which will launch them to an only slightly more enjoyable environment in college. The point of college is to be able to get a job, of which there are few these days, so that they might make money and support themselves in the currently unstable economy. Many jobs are just as depressing as school, boring office jobs, stressful waitress/kitchen jobs. No wonder people have such a dark view of life. Granted having a job is a necessary part of life, should not taking time to be creative, explore the outdoors, unplug from electronics, and let beauty renew you be an integral part of every day life? Why do people hate Monday and love Friday, because they have experienced primarily mundane and strenuous work/school for the last 5 days and don't want to return.
Mainly my point rests on that people should take the time (and risk) to get away, because time flies, and we never know how much we will have. So go ahead, do yourself a favor and take some time to breathe. Go fly a kite, go sledding, knit a sock, eat popsicles, take a hike, gawk at ancient architecture, whatever floats your boat. Just never get discouraged by the daily grind, or it will turn you into one bitter cup of joe.

Edited December 13, 2013 by Mary+Immaculate<3

[Era Might]

One of the things about being outside is you see things being what they are. The sun is the sun, it shines. Birds are birds, they fly here and there. The dirt is the dirt, it sits. That's exactly what you don't see in the routine of school, work, etc. You see everyone being, not what they are, but what they have to be. But eventually, you start believing that that is in fact what you all are, what you do in those confining spaces.

Edited December 13, 2013 by Era Might

[Mary+Immaculate<3]

One of the things about being outside is you see things being what they are. The sun is the sun, it shines. Birds are birds, they fly here and there. The dirt is the dirt, it sits. That's exactly what you don't see in the routine of school, work, etc. You see everyone being, not what they are, but what they have to be. But eventually, you start believing that that is in fact what you all are, what you do in those confining spaces.

And the observance of things as they really are can inspire introspection where one can start to really examine oneself and find out what their gifts, shortcomings, aspirations, and desires truly are, not what others have formulated them to be.

[Lil Red]

i think it needs more paragraphs. 

[blazeingstar]

As opposed to 100-200 years ago when you had 8 siblings, only 2 of who made it to adulthood with you.  You worked sun up to sun down every day, produced 8-12 children, 2-4 who lived until adulthood?

 

If you were lucky you were a farmer who worked the land.

If you were not lucky you lived in a city and at as young as 8 started working in a factory from sun up to sun down and went home to a tennament house where perhaps more of your sibilings/children survived but their might be 8 of you in a 10x12 room?

[Mary+Immaculate<3]

i think it needs more paragraphs.

Can't tell whether it's good...or needs more explanation. Please explain.

As opposed to 100-200 years ago when you had 8 siblings, only 2 of who made it to adulthood with you.  You worked sun up to sun down every day, produced 8-12 children, 2-4 who lived until adulthood?
 
If you were lucky you were a farmer who worked the land.
If you were not lucky you lived in a city and at as young as 8 started working in a factory from sun up to sun down and went home to a tennament house where perhaps more of your sibilings/children survived but their might be 8 of you in a 10x12 room?

True, but people actually valued each other back then. “I feel the greatest destroyer of peace today is 'Abortion', because it is a war against the child."--Mother Teresa. This, amongst other things, is why so many marriages/families/relationships crumble, why people want to commit suidcide, why people are depressed. Is not the the family the backbone of human civilization? No wonder we're crumbling, were spineless.

[blazeingstar]

Can't tell whether it's good...or needs more explanation. Please explain.
True, but people actually valued each other back then. “I feel the greatest destroyer of peace today is 'Abortion', because it is a war against the child."--Mother Teresa. This, amongst other things, is why so many marriages/families/relationships crumble, why people want to commit suidcide, why people are depressed. Is not the the family the backbone of human civilization? No wonder we're crumbling, were spineless.

 

 

I don't think its spineless as much as spoiled.  One could argue that most people in the developed world do not truly work for what they have.  I think this is incredibly true for children today, moreso than ever as parents refuse to allow their teenagers to do any work outside of school.  The happiest people I know are ones who started doing real work very young.

 

Mother Theresa covers one side, but I believe much of the apathy that has taken hold in our culture is due to the bitterness that is rightly felt by young people who are finally allowed to work their first jobs at 18-22 years old when they graduate highschool or college.  No other time in history has a child been able to reach puberty without a single working skill that they will be dependent on in their adult life.  One could argue they are taught reading and writing which will be used, but I see this more as a tool, with no concreate salable goods.

 

People used to know how to enjoy life when they were given breaks because they knew how to value their time, effort and energy.  Children today often grow up in fantacy and want to use every break they have to recapture that in adulthood.  Adults in previous times valued the presant and looked on the past instead of the other way around.

[Mary+Immaculate<3]

I don't think its spineless as much as spoiled. One could argue that most people in the developed world do not truly work for what they have. I think this is incredibly true for children today, moreso than ever as parents refuse to allow their teenagers to do any work outside of school. The happiest people I know are ones who started doing real work very young.

Mother Theresa covers one side, but I believe much of the apathy that has taken hold in our culture is due to the bitterness that is rightly felt by young people who are finally allowed to work their first jobs at 18-22 years old when they graduate highschool or college. No other time in history has a child been able to reach puberty without a single working skill that they will be dependent on in their adult life. One could argue they are taught reading and writing which will be used, but I see this more as a tool, with no concreate salable goods.

People used to know how to enjoy life when they were given breaks because they knew how to value their time, effort and energy. Children today often grow up in fantacy and want to use every break they have to recapture that in adulthood. Adults in previous times valued the presant and looked on the past instead of the other way around.

Very well said, I couldn't agree more. It was always frustrating for me when I was younger because I was under the legal working age, but didn't receive an allowance. I had very few means for income. A few years ago some family friends opened a coffee shop, which I began at as soon as my 14th birthday passed. Having a job, though it is small, has really shown me how much goes into a business: planning, stress, money, thought, energy. If people actually learned to give and not just take, they might have a better attitude "Tis better to give than to receive."
That's also true about cherishing the past. These days people get on whims and want everything and to do everything, and keep saying "I'll do this or that," but it never happens. The present should be focused on, "What can I do right now?" That way in the future you'll be able go look and think, "I'm so glad I decided to do that," and not, "What was I thinking?!" Edited December 14, 2013 by Mary+Immaculate<3

[Luigi]

As opposed to 100-200 years ago when you had 8 siblings, only 2 of who made it to adulthood with you.  You worked sun up to sun down every day, produced 8-12 children, 2-4 who lived until adulthood?

 

If you were lucky you were a farmer who worked the land.

If you were not lucky you lived in a city and at as young as 8 started working in a factory from sun up to sun down and went home to a tennament house where perhaps more of your sibilings/children survived but their might be 8 of you in a 10x12 room?

 

 

One could argue that most people in the developed world do not truly work for what they have.  I think this is incredibly true for children today, moreso than ever as parents refuse to allow their teenagers to do any work outside of school.  The happiest people I know are ones who started doing real work very young.

 

 

So which is true, the stereotype of children forced to slave away their meaningless lives until their early and pointless deaths, or that the happiest people you know are the ones who started doing real work very young?  

 

You seem to want to have it both ways.

[Basilisa Marie]

I'm not so sure, mostly because I feel like this teeters on the edge of the "it's impossible to be depressed when you do yoga while watching a sunrise!" type of thinking. 

I get depressed (not actual clinical depression, but sad, situation depression) when I feel like my life lacks purpose. Finding wonder and beauty in life can be a great way to find your purpose and remind yourself of your place in the grand scheme of creation. But it doesn't always work. Sometimes that just feels like hiding from your problems.  Loads of us feel apathetic because we're stuck. We were all told to go to college to get degrees because degree = great job prospects, but college costs a whole lot more money, and the jobs just aren't there. We see all kinds of corruption in politics and big business, and the message we get is that a few people at the very top make all the decisions, so nothing you really do will make a difference at all - nothing is going to change unless the powerful decide to change. We live in a hookup culture that is terrified of big consequences, so we don't commit to anything, ever (sex without babies, living together without marriage, etc). So basically the big picture sucks and there's nothing we can do about it, our future prospects suck because it's hard to find enough of a job to support yourself, and we can't count on anything to last beyond today. Who wouldn't be apathetic?

This is why we need to find other places to get our sense of worth and purpose, and now, more than ever, do we so desperately need religion. The Catholic worldview is so, so, so different from the rest of this, and even all of our theology turned out to be a sham, at the very least the idea of religion offers us a sense of purpose that isn't based on our selves. Seeing the hand of God in creation and at work in my life gives me a sense of direction, purpose, and hope for my future. And a lot of times, I think that's what allows me to see beauty in a messed up world. 

[Anastasia13]

Al things in moderation, except faith and grace.

[Mary+Immaculate<3]

I'm not so sure, mostly because I feel like this teeters on the edge of the "it's impossible to be depressed when you do yoga while watching a sunrise!" type of thinking.

I get depressed (not actual clinical depression, but sad, situation depression) when I feel like my life lacks purpose. Finding wonder and beauty in life can be a great way to find your purpose and remind yourself of your place in the grand scheme of creation. But it doesn't always work. Sometimes that just feels like hiding from your problems. Loads of us feel apathetic because we're stuck. We were all told to go to college to get degrees because degree = great job prospects, but college costs a whole lot more money, and the jobs just aren't there. We see all kinds of corruption in politics and big business, and the message we get is that a few people at the very top make all the decisions, so nothing you really do will make a difference at all - nothing is going to change unless the powerful decide to change. We live in a hookup culture that is terrified of big consequences, so we don't commit to anything, ever (sex without babies, living together without marriage, etc). So basically the big picture smells of elderberries and there's nothing we can do about it, our future prospects smell of elderberries because it's hard to find enough of a job to support yourself, and we can't count on anything to last beyond today. Who wouldn't be apathetic?

This is why we need to find other places to get our sense of worth and purpose, and now, more than ever, do we so desperately need religion. The Catholic worldview is so, so, so different from the rest of this, and even all of our theology turned out to be a sham, at the very least the idea of religion offers us a sense of purpose that isn't based on our selves. Seeing the hand of God in creation and at work in my life gives me a sense of direction, purpose, and hope for my future. And a lot of times, I think that's what allows me to see beauty in a messed up world.

Yes, escaping in order to experience beauty won't fix all our problems, I'm just saying we should take so time to recharge and be thankful for the beauty God has given us. The future certainly is not a happy subject to think upon, but God wants us to live in the present. He can take care of the future. One of the reasons I love the Catholic Church is because through Confession I realized that my life does matter, that Jesus does love me, that no matter what happens God is in control. If you want to know my whole story I can PM you.

[Mary+Immaculate<3]

Al things in moderation, except faith and grace.

Amen. Ora et Labora.

[Semper Catholic]

Did you steal this from a Facebook chain letter?

Also if you thought the point of college was to "get a job" I think you missed the point of college.

[PhuturePriest]

Other people have critiqued this, so I'll just critique the thing that bothered me:

College is not, and has never been about, getting jobs. The entire idea of college was made so people could learn what they wanted to for the sake of learning it -- getting a job is just a bonus. It was always commonly known that if you wanted a job, you learned a trade.