The first month of 2022 is officially in the history books as we enter into February; with visions on our boards, and seeking just a little more compassion for others who are going through a lot. What else can you even say about how the last two years have been for America; from the height of the pandemic to vaccines being politicized, to getting others to understand why Black Lives Matter. It’s been a roller-coaster ride for a lot of us and in the mist of it all, many have decided that this year would be the year that they take that road into becoming better people. Which brings me to this question: how hard is it to be nice?

Although I keep hearing the phrase ‘Nice guys finish last!’ it sounds like something that men with little to no social etiquette; who happen to be sexist towards woman, would say. Also on that same token, I’ve even heard the phrase ‘Men start wars, women finish them!’. Its moments like this where I wish I was a kid in the 90’s again; where the only thing I had to worry about was making sure I got straight A’s in my class and did all my chores so I’d get a raise in my allowance. Sure, America did have issues but in a world where there was no social media, things seemed a little saner.

These days we’re constantly bombarded with information from social media outlets like Twitter and Facebook, and most of the time, we find ourselves being drawn to the negative aspects of the platform – like ‘fat-shaming’ and hate speech. Yes, others counter that with positive things like break-dancing cat videos and that’s always a breath of fresh air, but sometimes I wonder…would we as a society be better off if we didn’t have social media? What would our lives be like if we didn’t have a platform that gave cyberbullies, trolls, bigots, and other bastards an outlet to spread their venom, and cause others who they deem weak all kinds of mental, emotional, and psychological damage…? As an Afro-American male living in the U.S. and everything that has transpired since George Floyd’s murder, that’s a question that I ask myself everyday. Not just that question, but also…why would you feel threatened by my existence?

It never made any sense to me why people feel the need to be racist, sexist, hateful, or just plain nasty. Most of the time people are like that because their parents are like that, and other times they feel so wounded by the world that they want others to feel just as miserable as they do. Hopefully the next generation will do much better in this department at being nice and more accepting than past generations before them, and that we can one day live in a world were we celebrate acceptance and diversity as what makes us unique; not what makes us different. (Which I’m already noticing.)

I’ll end this post with this; take time out of your day to brighten someone else’s.

Until next post, later.