Something to consider.
I live in Springfield Missour-uh, and let’s just say, there are a lot of trucks here, and I drive a Prius. I don’t live far from my studio, and when the weather is nice, I walk or ride my bike home. Though there is a bike lane, the other drivers here are NOT happy that I am taking up that extra two feet of space. It’s pretty normal that I get yelled at by a guy to “Get out of the f*cking road”. Or if I’m walking home, I often get called “Grizzly Man” or “Queer”- the latter when I’m wearing yellow socks in particular. It’s a very intimidating walk or ride home through the Missour-uh neighborhoods. Even when I’m driving, these people for some reason, think I want to race them at stop lights- in a Prius?? I feel like I’m from a different planet. It kind of feels like high school again. These are not my friends, but I do live among them.
So when I hear people talking about rumors of food shortages, the collapse of America, the downfall of civilization, the apocalypse, and how we’re all going to have to kill each other to survive, I feel justified in fearing that these people are going to kill me first. That is, until real life emergencies occur, and everyone proves me wrong.
Another part of living in Missour-uh, is that we frequently get ice storms that make it nearly impossible to drive in. But I’m not a home-body, so I go out and drive anyway like an idiot. The Prius does not do so well in these conditions. It gets stuck . A lot. But every time I do, those same people that are supposed to murder me in the apocalypse rush out of their trucks to pull me out. In this instance, the same people that usually ride two inches behind my back wheels, and driving 50 feet back making sure I don’t slide off again. These people drive around all night helping people like me get out of a bad situation. When the snow melts, it’s back to yelling from the cab of the truck, but during these situations there really is a sense of community.
It seems as though during times of danger, or tragedy, I see the best side of us. People running into burning buildings, people risking their own well being for the safety of others. You never have to look far during a hurricane, earthquake, or terrorist attack and find people running towards danger to help someone else. It almost seems instinctual. When all hell breaks loose on this earth, I will be happy that I live where I do, because these people I live beside are usually assholes. But when it matters, they’re amazing human beings.
Don’t waste your time listening to the voices on the radio that say that when push comes to shove, we will all turn on each other. It’s not who we are. And I don’t want to live near the person who thinks otherwise.
Thanks for reading.
Jeremy
I will do you the honors of posting the comment that many of you surely want to post:
“It’s nice that you see the world this way, but it’s not real. People get raped, stabbed, and murdered everyday. You’re delusional.”
Got it. Thanks.
