Acceptance vs. Apathy

My son commented on a fellow student's dance moves yesterday at school. It caused a third student to come over and hit my son on the head with a box from a board game. (and kids say school is boring???) He said about the dance, "That is weird!"

Last night I was thinking about an author and teacher, "I don't know what opinion I have of him yet."

And it all came together as some small sort of epiphany... Why can't we just see a kid dancing, a teacher teaching ? Why do we always seem to have some sort of automatic opinion on everything?

Being the active, connected social networker that I am, I immediately logged onto facebook and shared my observation:

Why is it that we have to have an opinion on everything? In the west we seem to give an intelligent quality to an opinion, as if we've given something some thought. So opinions are actually encouraged, even in children. But I'm thinking... isn't it intelligent to not have an opinion at all? To simply notice things, mindfully? I think it's maybe called acceptance.

My friend, Scot, commented back with a question, "Is it acceptance to not have an opinion or indifference? Or worse, apathy?

This, of course, got me thinking, and commenting back, as the good little social networker that I am. ; )

This kind of conditioning, where we place negative emotions on even words, like apathy, is exactly what I'm referring to. The Buddhists, quite arguably, could be the most apathetic people on earth. They happen to also be some of the most happy and content people by the way- a lot of them free of judgement, or at least practicing towards freedom from judgement.

In western society, especially in the United States, we revere and praise non-apathy. But, exactly what is non-apathy? Having an opinion would stand to be a pretty good definition, I think.

The whole point of my little epiphany was that we have become so conditioned to praising and glorifying people who have opinions that we equate having an opinion as intelligence. Now, if we stop just one wee, little minute and think about this... how on earth is this logical? When opinion is not in any way based on fact- by definition:

o·pin·ion

   [uh-pin-yuhn] Show IPA

–noun

1.

a belief or judgment that rests on grounds insufficient to produce complete certainty.

2.

a personal view, attitude, or appraisal.

3.

the formal expression of a professional judgment: to ask for a second Medical opinion.

source: dictionary-reference.com

We have basic human feelings towards crimes against humanity, persecution of basic human rights, and the like. This is not what I am referring to. Apathy towards these things is oftentimes a purposeful defense mechanism to ward off the fear of feeling much of anything. So I am not talking about apathy in any way shape or form.

What I am talking about is the mindless, conditioned way we tend to live and raise our children, with very little thought about our intentions or deep-seeded judgements.

I read a comical blog commentary earlier this morning, about the billboards erected by David Silverman and the American Atheists organization, stating the Christmas story is a myth. The very apt, Ron Placone, Pittsburgh comedian, really hit the nail on the head with his commentary on people's responses. I liked especially how he stated, "I get to play spectator and enjoy Church-members getting upset about something they shouldn't give a shit about, and an Atheist organization that should probably find a better way to spend their budget."

First of all, we enjoy comedians precisely for their opinions and commentary on the world. Secondly, Placone points out how completely precious it is to have a seat in the middle, watching all the uproar and hysterics.

I enjoyed doing stand-up, probably because I have a lot of opinions. And I have opinions on having those opinions, which I think is pretty funny. But, in real life, I know it's all just uproar and hysterics. That, at the end of the day, it's all just an illusion.

I try, these days, to practice my own way to live, based upon my own religious beliefs. And I'm grateful that my practice helps me see through to the opinions, and judgments that all of us have. Thoughts are judgements and opinions. And the thought process is inherently human. Seeing the forest through the trees is the precious wisdom in the middle.