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I noticed something...

A page in the diary "Meandering Thoughts"
Written by cateblack 11. Sep 2008 09:43 PM

Today I was helping a friend of mine... and I really noticed the difference in our attitudes... she is passionate about caring for wildlife ... birds in particular... and she is moving in a slightly different direction with the wildlife ... she wants to educate the general public about protecting our wildlife and the environment... so she is developing dvds using photos she has taken of wildlife in care and killed... she also raises money to feed the wildlife by selling cards using her own photos... now she is no Michael Moore... but her dvd gives a clear message... she is passionate... i help her with computer work... editing photos and printing off copies of her cards... her husband designed the format for the cards in Word... bloody Word... now she believes she can change ppls minds and touch their souls with the pathos and beauty of the photos of the wildlife... now the dvd is made using still photos and some pointed comments and music... my other friend is the talent doing the dvd.., i just helped with getting the photos ready ... my wildlife friend is on a campaign trail to spread the word... her mind just blossoms with possibilities of how to get the word out to ppl that we need to protect and nuture... we can't keep killing wildlife... and destroying habitat... well anyway the point i am making is that she believes she can effect change... I think she is wasting her time... and nothing she does will change humanity lack of consideration for wildlife... i can't think of ways of hitting humanity over the head about their need to care for wildlife and habitat...

do i care? yes but i feel it is a futile fight... nothing will change...

i truly admire her passion ... and her drive to educate... she is cutting back on caring to do this education... but is it worth it?

the difference in our attitudes... i can not see a way forward... she sees many doors...

All my life i have tried to be involved... but all the time there was a little voice in my head saying ... this is futile... God will never let you succeed...

i do not know how to end this...

is my attitude because of depression or does my attitude cause the depression?

rgds
cate

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Comments from the community:

Aaaaah the diff between a pessimist & an optimist!

Can u change? Yes, there's skills u can learn to be optimistic (says the ultimate pessimist! Lol but I just read a story on it!)

It really doesnt matter if your friend changes ppl's mindset & attitudes, the point is she tried, she persevered with determination & ingenuity & thats all that really matters!

Why wash your clothes? Their just gonna get dirty again... Is it a wasted effort washing them?

Why does she do what she does? Is it a wasted effort?

Written by Gyps, 11. Sep 2008 11:26 PM

Cate my 7 year old g/daughter is really into looking after the wild life here, we have a couple of large geckos that live in the garage downstairs have a small lizard that has decided to live in the mango tree and this week 3 wild turkeys have taken up residence in the back yard so what your friend is doing is terrific.And your imput no matter how small can only contribute to you well being. TC

Written by Deleted_User, 11. Sep 2008 11:49 PM

Hey Cate,

following on from Gyps comment. I agree it is about optimism, and optimism is a learnt behavior for the most part. I think that depression reduces our ability to be optimistic (not so many doors) but I don’t think it takes it away.

Until my sight loss and the other woes I have generally been optimistic. In fact I was noted for it. I wonder if it was optimism or positive thinking or just sheer determination to get out of the hole my parents buried me in? Foster homes neglect, physical and emotional etc etc there was no way I was going down the road my parents left me on. I chose optimism as a way to get there.

Can I suggest if you are a reader and can handle something pretty complex that you try and get a hold of a couple of books by a guy called Martin Seligman. First book is "learned Optimism" And shows how you can learn to be optimistic (its quite theoretical) The second one is called "Learned Happiness" He also has a web site that has some good tools.

I believe in optimism, maybe not at your ecology rescuing friends level, but at the level you can shape you own part of the world.

Hope it helps Cate, all food for thought

Love and support

Liz

Written by keller, 12. Sep 2008 06:37 PM

Hi, cate. Maybe you see your girlfriend putting her heart and soul into this,but you can,t see any immediate outcome, so you probably feel sorry for her,and frustrated..Maybe when we are depressed we can,t see out side the square if you know what l mean,But keep supporting her,remember every thing helps, and we need more compassionate people like her.Good on you for sticking by her regardless of how you feel, take care
rubee xxx

Written by Deleted_User, 12. Sep 2008 07:19 PM

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