Coexistence

Coexistence: existing together or at the same time; to live in peace with each other (Merriam-Webster). This concept seems fairly straight-forward. We all occupy this earth, we all are living here together, but how many of us are living in “peace with each other”? I’d argue, very few of us. How many of us try to exert our own ideals, desires, agendas, on other people, without considering the other person? This can be anything from refusing to let the car with its signal light into your lane, continually complaining about the noise your neighbour is making, or forcing your political or religious agenda down someone else’s throat without considering that they do not share your views, and by doing so you are negating the peace they are trying to create in their lives.

Myself, I can be extremely sensitive to people upsetting the peace I have attempted to carve out for myself in this world, amidst all the chaos I have no control over. And when these disruptions occur, I become hurt, angry, sad, frustrated, and sometimes I cry (note to misogynists: this does not mean that I am hysterical). Every single day, on multiple occasions, we are inundated with more information about the dumpster fire that is our planet. Some people care and try to make changes and their voices heard. But, thanks to the economic and political systems we subscribe to, these people rarely have control. Control is seemingly saved for the elite, the rich, the ones whose needs are best served by throwing a little more gasoline onto the fire and watching it burn. So, it is understandable why, when we have found our little space of peace – be it a place, a time of day, a cup of tea and a book, or a trashy television show – it can be exhausting when someone exerts their own self-interests over us and pulls us out of this place.

I think we have become incredibly poor at coexisting with other people, and even worse at exercising a little empathy and understanding that not everyone sees the world the way we do, and not everyone is here to serve one person’s specific needs and agenda. We are all individuals. We all have unique histories and perspectives, and the ease with which we can absorb ourselves in our own little universes, through our phones, televisions, tablets, and touchscreens, can make us forget that there is a world outside of the Internet, and that there are people living real lives outside of their Instagram profiles. It is easy to continue to walk around in our own bubble, and get irritated at people for the simple fact that they are coexisting in this world with us. This is not my earth, this is not your earth, this is our planet, we share it, and we share experiences on it, even if we do not realize it.

So maybe, with this in mind, we can all try to be a little better. Be less quick to get annoyed with people for doing something that infringes on our own peace, but rather try and carry and spread that peace around to everyone we meet. Be less quick to send an irritated text or email to someone for doing something as mundane as living and breathing. We all have the right to be seen, to be heard, to make noise and not tiptoe around life afraid of who we might disturb and the berating we might get for disturbing them. We also should understand that the way we behave impacts people, from friends to strangers. The fact is, we are never going to get along with everyone. There is always going to be that person who gets on our nerves. There is always going to be someone who rebuffs coexistence, insists on carrying their bubble with them everywhere they go, demanding others live by their standards. What we can do, is not rise to the occasion, and consider that their anger is not our fault, it is on them. It is something they are going through, and something they may never grow out of. But we can be better (this does not mean we are better). We can be better versions of ourselves, and hopefully in doing so, inspire other people to be better versions of themselves and spread a little more peace around, and hopefully one day coexist in peace together.