Sympathy and Complaints

I've been told once, by a close friend, that I'm not sympathetic. Sympathy is acknowledging a person's emotional hardship and providing comfort and assurance. It's a little similar to empathy in which a person is able to relate to another person due to a previous experience, or simply because they're capable of putting themselves in the other person's shoes.

Here's where I stand- I think the statement that I lack sympathy holds absolutely no ground and here's why. I am genuinely sympathetic and I care for people immensely. I do what I can to be helpful, useful, and worthwhile. But, with that said, I can completely understand how I would come off as being unsympathetic. For starters, I refuse to participate in most people's personal pity parties, You can't afford the new iPhone and your life is so hard because your old iPhone's camera has less megapixels? Get over yourself. Your life isn't that hard at all. It infuriates me when people complain about miniscule matters that, even they themselves, forget about two weeks later. So many of the things we deem important simply aren't. Complaints about material things irritate me the most. I refuse to participate and associate with people like that, so in essence I could see how that makes me come off as cold.

Now, tell me of your real hardships and that's a whole new story. If someone calls me uncaring, I couldn't care less. Because I know where I stand, and I know what I do to back myself up. But if someone calls me uncaring, while they themselves sit around doing nothing but complain about the current state of things without taking action- I'm going to call them out. Do something about it.

And also, this is off topic, but don't complain about the president if you didn't participate in the election. Heck, don't complain at all. If you don't like something- change it. The time will pass whether or not you're doing something. Set standards for yourself and live up to them. Expect the detours though. Nothing goes as planned. When the detours come (and they will), act accordingly. Don't complain, act.

Do yourself a favor, when you feel like being sorry for yourself or complaining - read Night by Elie Wiesel; then try complaining about your difficulties, I dare you.

And that's that. Thanks for letting me vent it out.