On Bearing Witness
Scattered thoughts, unexpected joys, and the mess in between.
What I’ve Been Thinking
Yes, there are nuances to what I am about to write about, and yes, it is different for everyone. I acknowledge that. Please, dear reader, allow me to express myself without having to account for every nuance. This is my view, and how I choose to engage with the world.
Clickbait videos have reached a whole new level. That is what we have come to—what creators have been forced to do to get us to care, to get us to see them, to remind us that there is a whole world out there that doesn’t have the warmth, the shelter, or the food that we do. Many of these creators never wanted to be creators but were forced into that position by their circumstances.
I think a lot of folks choose not to engage with those videos because of how much it affects them. It affects me, too. It paralyzes me. It makes me feel so much—something like survivor’s guilt over the geographic luck I have, the imaginary lines we chose to draw that cause so much suffering. “Suffering” here feels like such an understatement. These lines we call borders… but I digress.
I choose to engage with those videos even though they affect me so much mentally and emotionally because I am seeing a story about a person’s life. Stories are so powerful, while stats are numbers. Stories move me. They are etched into my brain and my heart. The sadness and anger paralyze me for some time, but they also give me the energy to move and show up afterward.
And how selfish of me to even type that? I have somehow managed to make their pain about me. I’m sorry. I know I can do better, and I will. I try every day. I also want to bear witness to your pain, to maybe keep you company from far, far away.
I’m sorry.
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Your thoughts, rants, or tiny joys are always welcome here. If you'd like more of these scattered sparks in your life, I'd be honoured to land in your inbox.