@ Ryan – Amazing analogies there . That’s an interesting dilemma you have — I know people who say they don’t care how others respond to their art, but I haven’t heard many people say they really don’t want to know how others respond. Are you going to start putting a disclaimer on things you write — something like “Note: you are advised not to express any praise or criticism to the author of this piece”?

@ Sean – I really agree that social media is creating new connection dynamics … it’s fascinating to watch unfold. I think it goes terribly wrong sometimes, but when it’s good — it’s great. It’s a tool, like anything, and we just have to learn to use it well.

@ Keith – Yes, the honest intentions breed true connections.

@ Jen – Ooh, I’ve heard that quote before. It’s crazy to think of how many of our stories are really spun from the same threads. But like you say, that’s why they tug at our own .

@ Jeb – “In my experience, people care because they want to matter. They want to invest in something that reaches a part of them very few other things can reach.” Beautifully said. I really do think you’re about to unleash an enormous wave that’ll roll forward continuously gathering momentum. It just takes that one tap to hit the right spot…

I think the real challenge is to find that ‘thing’ to truly care about. There’s this urge to care, and it’s so strong that sometimes we fake it. We try to care about something because others care about it, or because we think we should care about it, or because we want to feel connected. And then we’re left wanting.

And this is the plague that is affecting so many of us today. We’ve spent a lifetime caring about things we don’t actually care about. We were told to care, and we thought we did.

But we don’t. So now we stand at this strange juncture where the need to care in an honest way meets with the inability to connect to that part of ourselves that knows what to care about. We’ve conditioned ourselves not to trust that instinct, to expect it to end in disillusionment and apathy. And we feel lost. I feel lost.

I want to care deeply for something. For others. I know I can do it. And I also know that when I do, I’ll be tapping into the most significant part of me, unleashing something more powerful than I’ve witnessed to date. The potential stirs my emotions, and I think it’s helping me to begin trusting that instinct again. Not completely, not yet. But it’s coming.

(And you’re helping Zoe).
[rq=3416,0,blog][/rq]Finding Optimism

jen´s last blog post..yesterday, i felt like quitting.

I think that in my case it is more along the lines of what could I not help but care about! There is so much in the world around us that is worth caring for, and about, that it is difficult to hold back and to care for ourselves as well.

For me, I feel a connection with most people, since in the back of my mind I am always trying to see how I can relate to their story. And in our lives we all experience so much that we can usually connect with others on some level or another. Through the comments on these blogs, and on mine, we are building an instant rapport with our fellow humans and living in a mass virtual community.

This is a new form of connection and community for humans and it is endlessly fascinating to watch, and participate, as it develops.

Sean´s last blog post..How to Work Effectively at Home!

When I write, I’m often overcome with this feeling of “no one cares, you bumbling idiot!” (I believe you recently tweeted about writing and then wondering if what you were writing even mattered….) But yesterday, for one of the first times ever, I was able to convince myself that yes, someone cares. That’s a big accomplishment for me.

The unfortunate thing is that the next step of actually connecting with those people is lost on me. I’m not even sure I want to connect with them. If they want to read my stuff and it helps them, then great; but don’t tell me about it. I don’t want to know, and I don’t know why. I want to connect with my own words and then let those words stand out their for others to experience if they want.

This may be why I romanticize and envy those dead Europeans who wrote amazing stuff that we now read and experience without them having to hear about it.

It makes me think about the guy who sat at this library chair before me and wiped his dried nasal mucus on the underside of the desk; he enjoyed the experience, knowing he’d be long gone before I discovered his treasures.

If your story as presented comes from the heart, the gut, authentically, whatever, consistently, then they will care. And not just the “I wonder what this can do for me” caring, real caring connected to basic humanity.

I think, for my case, I get hung up on my voice. I’m not used to talking, not practiced in communicating emotion. But I’ll get there.

Thanks for the guide you put out with Chris.

Peace.
@vinylart

Daniel Edlen´s last blog post..What’s Not Painted, Played