Respect: External vs Internal

Respect to others.

Hello, My Friends

Is humanity less caring and respectful than a generation or so ago?

If we look around us we see chaos, disorder and disconnection.

Individuals seem to care less about other people and more about themselves, yet they are more disconnected from their true selves than ever.

We are more discontented and unhappier than ever.

What motivates people to push boundaries?

Is it that we live in a world with little external discipline, which also means we have little internal discipline? Is it that there are less consequences for ‘bad’ behaviour, and as we ‘get away’ with activities that we perceive increases our well-being, we justify to ourselves our behaviour. We say to ourselves and others, ‘they can afford it, insurance will pay, it’s not my fault they were in the wrong place.’

We are a generation that has so many privileges, yet we are also a generation that hasn’t developed the ability to bounce back when we hit on hard times.

Self-respect is an internal compass that determines what we will and will not do. Without this compass, we are lost, we treat things with more respect than we do people. And even then, not so much.

Because we live in a throw away age – items are made to break, and be discarded, which creates a who cares attitude. If it breaks, we just go and get another one.

Is the lack of respect a societal thing?

Is the lack of respect a family thing?

Where do we learn to respect others and their property? Can this learning be eroded? Can we stop it?

Great questions, I believe we each have a responsibility to love ourselves, to honour who we are. In honouring who we are, we will respect ourselves, we will also respect those around us, and we will value what we have.