Didn’t you hear? The sky is falling.

There’s something in the air…

And it’s not the usual birds flitting, flowers blooming, lovers making out all over the north oval for which this season is known. Spring is different this year. The world is different. We’re different.

Everywhere I turn there’s this almost tangible aura of dread. It’s in people’s eyes, in their Facebook statuses and in their tweets. This year spring doesn’t mean new beginnings. This year spring means doom.

Seriously my friends, take a look around you.

The snow was a disaster. A monumental catastrophe. The worst thing that’s ever happened to us since the last time it snowed 6 inches and ruined our lives.

March Madness is a mess. A depressing calamity. Every bracket in the nation is screwed up, and it’s all Kansas’ and Villanova’s fault (which I know because I asked my sister, not because I give a rat’s tail about basketball).

Healthcare is a tragedy. A devastating misfortune. We’re all going to die now because some bill passed, and because lots of people have been talking about it, and because our president’s name is Obama.

All we do all day long is complain, and half the time we don’t even know what we’re complaining about.

Just to say something negative- to propel the sense of dismay that’s been circulating through us all like the swine flu virus- has become the only driving force in our lives.

What the heck is wrong with us??

People, I know things look bad out there. I KNOW. Didn’t you read my post about becoming homeless? The economy is bad, the weather has been crappy, March Madness is in disarray (or so I’m told), and healthcare reform is daunting and confusing as all get out. There’s very little any of us can control right now, and that makes us feel vulnerable. Trust me, I know.

But what we do have control over, and what can never be taken away from us, are our attitudes.

Think about it.

All that whining and groaning and bitching and moaning we’ve been doing on Facebook and Twitter- all of that does nothing, except get other people pissed off and riled up too. Everyday I watch my Facebook “friends” get into wars about politics and what have you, and I sit back and think two things:

1. How did these people ever pass 4th grade English?
and
2. How is this helping anyone feel better?

So I propose a New Spring Revolution (yes revolution, not resolution).

For every complainy, mumbly, grumbly Facebook status or tweet we’re inspired to post, I propose we post something positive (or at least expressively neutral) instead. The next time I want to say, “Blast this wretched world that will not employ a lovely person like me” I’ll instead say, “The Robin Red Breasts sure were purty in my yard this morning.” Or something a little less cheesy. You get the idea.

And the next time you want to post, “The bill passed; we’re all gonna die,” or “F you Kansas for screwing up my bracket,” or the ever so popular, “I HATE SNOW,” take a moment to think about something NICE in the world. Think about your family. Or the sunshine. Or the fact that, even though we’re all struggling in this economy, most of us here at OU are getting educations that will make us as competitive as we can possibly be in the crowded job market. Then take a deep breath and post something like, “This day is not nearly as bad as it could be.” Because I promise you, it’s not.

This day is not as bad as it could be. Nor is March Madness, or the weather or our president. So take a moment and say something nice. It may not inspire a Facebook war, but it just might make somebody feel better about the world.

Much love.

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No Comments on "Didn’t you hear? The sky is falling."

  1. Clare
    23/03/2010 at 3:07 pm Permalink

    “The sun shines and warms and lights us and we have no curiosity to know why this is so; but we ask the reason of all evil, of pain, and hunger, and mosquitoes and silly people.”
    -Ralph Waldo Emerson

    …completely agree with you! having a positive attitude, for however long you can stand it, definitely makes a difference. what is that thing that “they” say? attitudes are contagious…are yours worth catching?

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