There was a time that all I could do was think of myself as a victim. Everything was happening to me, and I was powerless to stop it or do anything about it. Now, I'm not saying I had a lot of control over circumstances, but my reaction wasn't helping anything.
There's another song quote (that was actually around back then) that challenged this mindset and helped me a lot. It's from Bastille's Pompeii; "how am I gonna be an optimist about this?" There are two ways to read/hear that one:
- How am I ever supposed to be an optimist about this. It's too hard.
- What can I focus on in this mess that'll help me be optimistic?
At the time, I only heard the latter, which is much more helpful. I took it as a challenge. Life might suck, but that doesn't mean there's nothing to hope for, or be optimistic about. Yes, my marriage had fallen apart, but I still had friends and family who were there for me.
Back to Venom. Again, there are multiple ways of interpreting the quote, but I think the main one, the one they were actually going for, is a challenge.
Picturing yourself as a victim doesn't get you out from being cornered. Picturing yourself as an underdog, where the odds are stacked against you but the hero always wins, is much more optimistic.
Physical health needs physical cures. Broken bones get splinted. Atrophied muscles need practise.
Mental health, though it may require medication and chemical rejigging, needs mental cures. Changes in thought patterns. Mental practise.
Mind over matter. Fake it til you make it. Whatever cliche you prefer, it's oversimplified and really annoying to get thrown in your face, but there is still some truth in it. I'm not saying it's the answer, because it's a puzzle, and that's one piece, but all of the pieces are important, whether we like them or not.
Mental weight-lifting is one of the hardest things I've done, and I still have to do it, but I'm not a victim; I'm an underdog.
As Carrie Underwood sings, "I am the Champion."
No comments:
Post a Comment