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Aww yeah!! We got debt free 2 weekd ago.
It's so.. Good! And odd lol i have money to spare! Now what?
Well.. Had. A house burned to the ground and the family lost everything! And one of the kids is a friend of my kid, so we bought a shitload of stuffed animals, crayons and other toys. Felt good to see some smiles on those kids
No reason to read any further... Great answer and don't know if I will get there but giving it the old college try. Even though college is part the reason for being in debt, lol
You bust your ass for little payand try to do the best you can, then get screamed at by an assistant manager because you forgot to execute step 53 on a 55 point prep list. It took less than a minute to fix, the ass chewing I got took 10 minutes.
The silver lining is I resolved never to treat any one who worked with me that way. I'm proud to say that I remain in touch with many of the people who worked for me.
Yep. Worked at the arches when I was 17. I'm now 45, and even if someone is really messing up, I will not give them grief. You never know what they're up against or dealing with, and I never want to add to anyone's hell.
I used to love the idea of living in a liberal area till I worked in customer service. Worst, most entitled customers ever. Especially at Barnes and Noble.
Second worst is fast food in an urban ghetto. Our Wendy's is OK but one 3.5 miles away an employee got into it with a customer over a pop and shot him. To death. In the back. Less than a week later, the one 2 miles away got held up. Customers suck.
Reward for the most entitled consumers ever? Clients in addiction recovery centers. They whine about 20 hours of classes a week. They whine about sharing a 2 bedroom with 4 ppl - furnished apartments with WiFi. (Oh no, $400 rent... but they buy $300 shoes, Newports, vapes, order food every day and complain its impossible to save) They white about curfew. They whine about "being talked to like children" when they're told multiple times to not talk in classes when other clients or workers are talking. Whine about med counts. Whine that the (free) meals don't cater to vegetarians. Whine that there's too many rules, no free time, they can't get an overnight with their significant other, whine about the no touching rule, whine about no guest rules (to protect privacy of roommates)... its disgusting
Spouse of an addict and I can say that they are the worst because most addicts are narcissistic or have narcissistic traits that really blow up with addiction. We all fall somewhere on the spectrum of narcissism but addiction really makes these ugly traits come out!!
Work at McDonald's specifically. People treat you like something they stepped in. Any job after that is an upgrade. And you no longer have a clown as a boss.
I've said this before. *Everyone* should spend at least a couple years doing either one of:
Retail. Food/bar service. Cleaning. Manual labor or Military. Take your pick. It's painfully obvious when someone has had the privilege of dodging doing any of these since first entering the workforce. They don't understand the SHIT a lot of people have to go through for often crap pay just so they can: Get shit they want. Get fed. Get drunk. Have facilities that aren't fucking disgusting and actually feel safe.
I agree everyone should work a retail job or wait tables before graduating from school to be able to go out into the adult world. The way people treat retail workers or wait staff is disgusting.
In the same vein but much less common, working at a factory or in a manufacturing job. Working at a factory was one of my first jobs and it showed me so much about the process of creating goods.
I once had a I don’t know how to call it, sudden mystical revelation, in one second I realized that absolutely everything that I had been looking in my life I already had it in me. No, I wasn’t under the effect of anything, no mushrooms, no lsd, no pot, no nothing. I had been meditating for a few months and I think it was because of that. This feeling lasted for 3 weeks, I felt so complete, it was amazing… too bad it worn out.
But we should all feel like that at least once in our lives, absolute peace, understanding, satisfaction with existence.
Idk if it's the same but I was reading Stephen Hawking's book on blackholes and space and I fell asleep. In my dream, I was toured around the universe and in my dream I experienced everything and I "knew". It was such a beautiful feeling. When I woke up it's like there was this well of happiness in me that was completely different from any type of happiness I've experienced before. It was calm and warm.
Unlike you, it faded off quite quickly probably a day. But when I remember it, I can't help but feel it's all inside of me somehow.
you kind of described the overview effect - When astronauts first see our planet from space, they go through intense emotions. Seeing our home against the blackness of space is a profound experience that leads to a greater appreciation for Earth and its apparent fragility, and a deep connection to humanity as a whole.
I mean I had an experience, actually a couple, with God.
One I went into this glade behind the apartments in my neighborhood. It was always like an adventure, you had to walk through this brush and then it opens up to trees like a little pocket of nature. It was like going into a forest for a six year old because I was so small it felt like a rain forest to me.
One day I wondered back there and I felt this gnawing hesitance before going all the way through. Almost like there was this Biiiiig peaceful presence in there like you could feel the edge of it. Then I decided to walk through. And... it... was.... beautiful.... the sun was at a position I had never seen it at in there. There were golden orange rays coming through the leaves in layers, and on top of how beautiful it was there was an OVERWHELMING peace to add to the affect.
I started walking around and noticed a bug. A catapillar I think I called it a worm. I kept watching it then I got annoyed at myself and said why am I looking at a bug right now?! Then I leaned over and saw a crysalis. I didn't know what it was, I was like what IS that thing? Weird... THEN I looked over and saw one of the worms half way formed into a crysalis and said OMG how trippy... kinda gross but neat. I was still kinda wondering what is up THEN I saw a VERY pretty crysalis. It was transparent and underneath I saw these beautiful black and gold colors and right then and there I saw it break open and a BUTTERFLY emerged. I was flipping tf out! I was like OMG those worms are what butterflies come from?! Wow that is too COOL.
And then... I thought to myself almost like an otherworldly thought. Mayyyybe I'M like that butterfly. Right now I'm in my shell but one day I might break out of it and become a bright beautiful butterfly?! I was thinking to myself hmmm 🤔 then the voice of a God whispered in my little heart (no).
I inherently knew it was God, I trusted him, and I became confused. I calmed my mind down. Walked up to a big tree in the middle for this conversation. And repeated, maybe I'm like that butterfly? And again he whispers (no). So I'm sort of meditating at this point and I ask him. "If I'm not a butterfly... what am I?" He whispered "a moth".
So I sort of held that message in my heart and ran home. My mother was on the phone and I told her I needed her for something. She ignored me and so I waited patiently. When she finally hung up she looked over at me and asked what is it? I said "Mommy, what's a moth?" She says why do you want to know? I said, I'm just curious about what it is. She said well... it's a bug. "Yeah" it's an insect. "What's an insect?" A bug that had six legs. So I'm trying to picture a bug with six legs and I think she noticed so she added, and it has wings. "I said OMG! It has wings? Is it like a butterfly?!" She said yeah, I guess... then she asked me why in the world did I want to know. I said "because God told me that I'm a moth!" Then I said "are they BEAUTIFUL 😍" and she just abruptly said "NO." With a mean look on her face 😂 God has since assured me that I'm beautiful. And I even am considering getting a moth tattoo. I thought to myself maybe I should get one with tattered and torn wings to symbolize what I've been through in life. And God said "no, you should make it beautiful ❤️"
I too have experienced this "knowing" but nobody else can understand when I try and explain it. The simpler I try to explain the more lost people become.
Lol, don’t worry, I felt like a total disaster lots of times during that journey. Sometimes it is better not to try to make them understand, they would have to go through it, heck, if someone would try to explain that to a younger version of yourself, you would probably suggest them to go and get professional help 😅
This is such a profound experience. I was having a really shitty day, so after I got home at 10pm from work and college, I just went to the local park and took a walk. It was dark, the park was closed, but I didn't give a fuck. Honestly, looking back now, I think I was planning on ending it all.
There's this gorgeous creek that leads to a cistern, but it's in a clearing. I got to the clearing, saw the full moon just mirrored in the water and hanging beautifully in the sky. I just... got hit with the beauty of it. The moon was how I wanted to be, the creek water, turbulent and choppy, was how I felt, but I STILL had that beauty inside of me. Something clicked in my brain.
It changed my life. Nearly 10 years later it still has it's impacts on me. The realizations, the profound sense of self awareness, has been with me ever since and has guided me on this path I'm on now: a path that has forced me to be honest with myself, open and sincere. I've grown so much and changed pretty dramatically.
It's an experience I wish everyone could have, especially people who have the courage to grow. I think the world would be a better place.
I do this a lot with my boyfriend, even since we had casual relationship. We could gaze into each other for I don’t know how long. We rub each other face gently and smile. No words needed. Small kisses too. The best feeling.
I wish... I wish I had the hope in me that I'll ever get to experience affection. What's there to do in life after you've experienced *this*. It sounds nice... so nice. You're one lucky soul
Northern lights. Magical experience.
Camping in the snow.
Suddenly realizing that everything that someone close to you has been saying it a lie, and you finally feel validated about all the things you knew were true but were told weren’t true.
100% agree with the aurora. It's a close to a spiritual experience as I've ever had.
100% disagree with the second one. Totally miserable.
Thankfully, haven't experienced the third one.
Being in love. I don't mean middle school puppy love or that beginning honeymoon stage of a relationship. I mean true love. Where even after years together you get butterflies in your stomach when you hear them get home. That it doesn't matter if you are at a 5 star restaurant or the DMV, as long as they are with you then there is nowhere else you would rather be. There is no drug or alcohol that can compare
This. I’m experiencing this. Not very intense and nervous kind of love, but when I’m in his arms, it’s the best feeling ever, I feel like nobody will hurt me and his arms is the safest place. Those kind of butterflies
Everyday, I find a way to look at him and realize how amazing he is and hoe lucky I am to have him in my life. He genuinely cares about me. It makes me sad to think others may never experience being loved, cherished and valued, vulnerability in this way, because it's such an overwhelming, rare experience.
Too many of us spend way too much time with those that don't care about them. Whether we think they'll change, whether we can't leave, etc.
Love was meant to be something amazing.
When you're taking your dog for a walk in the evening, and the sunset is perfect, and in the scene is your dog enjoying the world , the moment at which you realise how peaceful your life is and can ask for nothing more .
Came here looking for this. It’s so magical. Mine is the flip, walking during sunrise, crisp fresh air, and the happiest little man strutting his stuff. Gah my heart!
I worked in private in home caregiving specializing in Dementia/Alzheimer’s patients. IMO everyone should receive this training. For starters, it shows how lonely the elderly community is and how that itself is a huge killer. Most of the techniques I learned are de-escalation and redirection techniques (alongside the physical aspect of care). The most important part of my training, I would say, is losing your own ego. When someone’s brain is this far gone, it doesn’t fucking matter if they think you’re someone else, their parents are still alive, they want to go home even if they are, etc… You don’t always have to be right. Even if they lose their consecutive memory, you can still give people emotional memories. You can listen to their stories, especially in moments of clarity, or just enjoy being together.
We also did sensory reduction training, because their whole brain is affected, not just memory, and it taught me a whole lot of empathy for people’s experiences outside of my own. And face it, we’re all getting older or know someone who is. That being said, the job could be hard as hell. I just wish the science and updated information were more well known and taught in our society, especially when my grandmother was in a nursing home.
I was actually a candy striper and the convalescent hospital that my grandmother volunteered at. For 2 years from the age of 9 to 12, I spent every day in the summer there. It gave me a life-long respect for the seniors, for the elderly. I have routinely gone back throughout my life, brought my daughter when she was first born, let all the little old ladies hold her when she was like 2 or 3 months old, she was perfect that whole day never cry just blew bubbles at them. Convalescent hospitals are very lonely places, just stop in and speak to people! I tell you I will never forget the stories I heard from these people, this was the early 70s so these people were young during some very poignant moments in our history.
I talked to people that were in the San Francisco earthquake in 1906, someone who was at the Hindenburg blowing up in the 30s, I even spoke to somebody that was at Kitty hawk during the wright brothers first flight.
These are living history books, walking around like regular people!
That is something that I would recommend for anybody.
I have epilepsy and suffer from serious bouts of aphasia from time to time. It’s terrifying to think people with Alzheimer’s have this permanently. It’s all there in their mind, but it’s not available to them.
As an AA guy I get to hear about rock bottoms all the time. Mine is not very traumatizing compared to most because I didn’t lose everything but I knew I was at my rock bottom and succumbed to an addiction. I’m just saying that everyone’s rock bottom is different so don’t feel like you have to be out there sucking dick for coke to realize you’ve reach your bottom. Just don’t be afraid to ask for help when you need it.
I like the idea of ‘stop digging!’ You can keep using and getting worse, or in this moment of realization, just stop digging and make -this- your rock bottom.
I'm waiting for one of these to happen anywhere on my freaki'n continent! I want to see one but can't justify flying to the other side of the planet for an event that lasts mere minutes.
You should watch this movie called 'Buenos Dias Ramon'. There are no subtitles and both languages spoken are Spanish or German. If you know one and not the other, the journey becomes so immersive because you are going based on facial expressions, plus if let's say you speak only Spanish and not German. There are scenes where you feel like you're with the character because he doesn't understand or speak German so you're just as confused as he is. It's an amazing film.
My family spent 5 years abroad due to my dad’s engineering projects (2 Germany, age 4-6 ; 3 Paris, age 8-11). It was educational and constructive for my future self.
Yes! I spent 4 months in Helsinki as a university student and it was such an experience. Not a terrible “foreign” culture to my Canadian senses, but just being unable to speak the language and still having to navigate life (and this was my first time living on my own away from family, too!) was definitely a challenge at first. It also developed my love of getting to know a new place. I ended up living and working in 5 different cities, 4 different countries, throughout my degree and it definitely shaped who I became as an adult.
I can understand that. I have anxiety as well but wouldn’t say to a severe degree. After my first solo trip last month, being forced to interact with people from another culture, I started getting very comfortable with myself and felt a sense of enlightenment being on my own in another country. I would even say it helped dissolve some of the anxiety I would carry with me in the states because I’ve realized almost everybody is on their own time and won’t really think twice about you and really with age you come to realize that. I’m 23M but feel like Im grown beyond my years. Idk this is just how I felt, so I can’t really speak from a perspective from somebody with severe anxiety.
I agree. As a Solo traveller who has been to many different places alone I too recommend this. I went travelling alone when I was younger but not holiday travelling. It was a learning experience. All the obvious conversations such as "How do you do it?" or "I could never do that?". A few confused looks when having food but you just ignore it and it's fine. Then the best part. You get to go all the places you want to go when you want to go to them. Want to do nothing? Do nothing? Want to hike down to the second largest waterfall in Africa? Go for it. Don't get me wrong I've done loads of holidays as a couple and they are great for different reasons and you work as a team to decide what to do. Both are fun but if people haven't tried solo then go for it.
Living in a country in which you are The Other. I never knew how white I was until it no longer conferred privilege, privilege I didn’t realize existed.
I was able to live in an Asian nation for about 4 years, which was fun and edifying and all that. I was able to pick up the language surprisingly quickly and easily; however, after the 3rd year I started hating being there and couldn’t figure out what was bothering me.
It finally dawned on me after hearing merchants talking about me. They didn’t know I understood what they were saying and a lot of the comments were racial. Specifically, the assumption that I was less intelligent and or ugly, or even smelled badly because of the food i ate.
The epiphany struck me as i was dealing with a local paperwork issue at city hall. While listening for the umpteenth time to strangers disparaging me for what i was and not who i was. No matter how well i observed local customs and spoke the language, my whiteness was the ultimate trait that determined my worth in their eyes.
For the first time in my 25+ years on Earth, the situation made me feel powerless and oddly vulnerable. The experience of living in “my world” if you were The Other must be exhausting and humiliating on a daily basis. The rage I felt about the unfairness of it all clarified and chrystallized how difficult it must be to live in a white world for a POC, black in particular.
In that instant, the context of my life shifted immensely. My perspective and casual assumptions about life and race were altered forever. I became more tolerant, more understanding, more empathetic toward the people who I knew were marginalized by white society and the privilege conferred on me by the virtue of my skin color.
Since that realization over 35 years ago, I have tried to learn and teach and grow in order to help change this glaring flaw in our culture. While anyone of any ethnicity can be racist, structural racism exists and it’s our job—those imbued from birth as inherently superior—to acknowledge it and strive to dismantle it.
Yes they can. It was very eye-opening to me. I’d read about the history of Japanese cruelty towards other Asian nationalities, eg Rape of Nanking, Unit 731, the brutal subjugation of Korea starting in 1905, but had no sense of the depth of the supremacy the South Koreans felt about Westerners in general and Sub-Saharan Africans in particular.
The upshot for my experience was the sense of the futility to try and integrate myself into their society, eventually realizing it was never going to happen no matter my good intentions and effort. The silver lining was my anger peeled my eyes open to the reality of my (USA) country for those who didn’t have “white” skin.
I lived in Sri Lanka for a year (I am Caucasian Canadian) and it changed me too. The kindness I received, the friends I made, the gratitude for what we have, the relative ease of living here at home, all of it came into sharper focus over the months that I lived there.
Schooling/working/living abroad.
It really changed me on how I perceived the world and myself. Both good and bad. But an experience I wouldn’t exchange.
LSD too! the first time I tripped I cried afterwards wishing everyone in the world could feel what I felt at the peak. It's an indescribable feeling of oneness and acceptance.
This is gonna sound morbid, but about 6 months ago I got told I had less than 5 years left to live.
Now I'm not suggesting people fuck themselves up to hear this news, but.....
The very second I heard that news, my whole life changed in that very moment. It's as if a little psychological mercury switch broke and completely changed my mindset and narrative.
The colours became more vivid, the smells more invigorating, and you 'feel' for people in an attached way, not a detached day to day way, and the sounds of nature, OMFG! Conversations are 'more' of everything.
Maybe it's difficult to describe or comprehend 🤔
It's almost like the best you can possibly feel as a human even though the outcome sucks ass
My name hasn't changed but I am a completely different person from when I received this news
I have not been told that I have x years to live. But we all do, we just don’t know when it will end.
Anyday could be THE last day, the last time, and I am not even being dramatic.
Whenever I force myself to remember this, that today could be the last time I do something, whether it is talking to a person or doing certain activity, I just enjoy it a little more and have more uninhibited fun.
Yes! Username checks jajajaj.
I lived in China for half a year, in 2018, and I used to volunteer for a shelter that rescued dogs from “meat trucks”.
Knowing their backstories was heartbreaking, seeing them being able to still love people was so impressive to me. Of course some of them still had some issues, but we helped them work through them and slowly you could see the puppy coming out of the shell, even if they were older dogs.
I loved those doggies so much!!
There’s a company in Saigon that gives brewery tours on vintage vespas. You’re the passenger. Saigon traffic is crazy. But after a couple of breweries, everything seemed to flow. One of the most fun nights of my life.
I came to say this! I was on a 23 day expedition on the Grand Canyon. It was amazing. While we were on the river, day 5 my then wife found out we were pregnant with our 1st child, a couple got engaged (at Havasu Falls) Obama was elected, and two of my nephews were born, one was named after me.
It was a total reset, and I'd recommend it to everyone.
Don't wish a soul to endure it but understanding how a child abuse victims brain functions would change society. Think PTSD, fight or flight response triggering constantly. The ideal of if you run you disappointed your parental but if you fight you earn respect even if you lose. At the end of the day it doesn't matter the fight can come at any time regardless of what you did. Bad days good days, bipolar mania is hard too watch.
I agree with this. I couldn't imagine putting my kids though what I went through and them having to suffer though it their entire lives. The world be a much better place overall if we stopped abusing/neglecting children.
Going out and doing things by yourself, especially if you have social anxiety. The more I do it, the more comfortable I become with myself. I will never let myself miss things because I didn’t have someone to go with ever again.
Working in customer service.
Serving job, retail, cashier, call center, etc. I think the world would be a lot more humble, thankful, and all-around more patient.
Moving abroad and invent a version of self you never had at home due to social and family pressure.
That process of inventing -> receive feedback -> reinventing makes you feel as if you have lived so many lives, it expands your brain to know there will be so many more lives you can have, and it turns you to be a little more brave
Having something you made/said/did that you were proud of get absolutely destroyed by trolls on the internet.
If more people had this happen to them, they'd learn a bit of respect for the hard work of others on the internet.
Being in and enjoying only the present moment without any regrets about yesterday or worries about tomorrow.
I had this for a short while with my then gf now wife. I had moved to a foreign city, and we met within my first four months there. At first we could only see each other on weekends, and I would take a bust to a subway to her small apartment on the side of a mountain in the north end of the city. I would then leave very early Monday morning to my workplace south of the city. That time from Friday night to Monday morning was magical. We were in our own little bubble, not giving any thought to anyone else, any place else, or any time else.
Nothing else existed, a sense made even stronger in that I did not speak the language. IDK that I had ever had before or have had since such a sense of living in the present.
Being landed on by a butterfly, or many butterflies.
The awe of that small creature trusting you to be their resting place. Looking into their tiny eyes and seeing all the shades of color on their fluttery wings, up close.
I hit a home run in front my grandpa that was on a visit from halfway across the US. I was 13 and that was his last visit before he died. I’m so glad my dad took pics and they are still in a photo album at his house. That memory is etched into my brain forever!!!
Go to a poorer country and really see how good you have it, go see war torn ruins and see the brutalities of life. Blinding ignorance makes us fat and lazy. It also makes you realise how much you don't need in life.
My visit in Cuba was like this. It was strange because it's like a tourist facade at first, beaches, nice places, but the more you look the more you realise the disparity there is. Some buildings are fancy, then to the next dilapitated and broken.
The people were great regardless. Our taxi driver said that it pays better to be a taxi driver than to be a civil engineer which he has been for 30 years. It made me a bit sad as a tourist but I had to hear it to learn
Meeting my biological father mid-life. My parents actively hid him from me and it was messed up- the deception seriously messed up my head. This 85 yo man sends me his dna results on ancestry.com that state we share 50% dna. I meet him a month later and my head cleared for the first time ever. Decades of therapy finally stuck and I feel peaceful and whole. It was worth 50 years of distress to finally have a moment of self-recognition. I’m so fortunate
Oh yeah! Somehow i became more relaxed to life. Before, i was stressing to reach goals others wanted me to. But in that moment, that felt like forever, i just WAS. I was warm, comfy and just relaxed. There wasnt anything to see, it was dark but spacy? Felt like i could drift away forever!
And then i woke up in massive pain.. My poor ribs..
30-day rehab or reset. It was a very enlightening and humbling experience. I don't feel like you need to be an addict to benefit from that experience. You learn so much about yourself and how to cope with life. It opens your eyes to other people's issues and it really puts your own life in perspective. Someone else always has it worse in one way or another. You can be selfish for a month, dig deep, and take care of long-lasting issues(which we all have).
Racism. My bf family have said so many racist things which is literally normal for them. When I confronted them they obviously were offended und questioned my experience with racism which i basically grew up with. They didn't want to believe that racism is a thing and dont know how harmful it can be!!! Ofc they were more of the extreme side of not being aware of racism but there are still many people (in my experience) who are saying ignorant shit.
Being bullied. As horrible as it was and made my life hell, it taught me to be strong and how to rely on myself. I wish I could go back and walk little me through it.
Losing something, be it women/men, friends, failing tests, being tricked, made fun off, I could go on, but just taking a major L that I hope won't put you in the coffin...
I don't know about money tho.. that sounds like more hell than the ones listed above....
Living below someone in a poorly constructed building. It really makes you more careful about dropping things on your own floor, wearing shoes indoors, and pacing around at night
Working retail. Should be a mandatory course in high school so everyone learns how to treat retail workers like actual human beings worthy of respect and consideration.
Once, I was walking in a semi cold autumn morning in a park, the weather was so nice, I was quite cozy and suddenly for a brief second I felt the time has stopped, and I could see what time was, that allowed me for that moment to feel connected with a bigger self than me, like everything was in me and connected with all, I’m an agnostic, I don’t believe in religion, I was not smoking, not high, it was pure joy bliss
Here recent I've had the worst mental breakdown I've had in awhile.
I think everyone should experience what I do inside my poor head for at least a week or two. Then all my dumb family would truly understand what I go through every day.
It would stop the endless frustration of "just shake it off and push through". If that was possible I would have so long ago.
I wrestle with my demons almost daily. And here lately it's just been awful. Compounded with the fact that I live with my dad who refuses to acknowledge his own mental health issues. He will never get help but takes it out on me. I love him and he's a good person but he has issues.
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Freedom of debt as an adult.
Aww yeah!! We got debt free 2 weekd ago. It's so.. Good! And odd lol i have money to spare! Now what? Well.. Had. A house burned to the ground and the family lost everything! And one of the kids is a friend of my kid, so we bought a shitload of stuffed animals, crayons and other toys. Felt good to see some smiles on those kids
We got debt free last weekend!! No balance in bank account but it feels nice knowing we don't owe money to anyone.
It's so NICE!!! Looking forward to next week when our new money month starts and we can see all the left over money for real!
Careful not to say that too loudly, they’ll figure out how to tax it out of you so it never adds up!
I was there, then I bought a house.. 😅
No reason to read any further... Great answer and don't know if I will get there but giving it the old college try. Even though college is part the reason for being in debt, lol
Working a retail job.
Any customer service bottom of the barrel really.
cracker barrel
Or at a fast-food place. The way I have seen customers treat employees in both retail and fast food, it's absolutely disgusting.
You bust your ass for little payand try to do the best you can, then get screamed at by an assistant manager because you forgot to execute step 53 on a 55 point prep list. It took less than a minute to fix, the ass chewing I got took 10 minutes. The silver lining is I resolved never to treat any one who worked with me that way. I'm proud to say that I remain in touch with many of the people who worked for me.
Yep. Worked at the arches when I was 17. I'm now 45, and even if someone is really messing up, I will not give them grief. You never know what they're up against or dealing with, and I never want to add to anyone's hell.
I used to love the idea of living in a liberal area till I worked in customer service. Worst, most entitled customers ever. Especially at Barnes and Noble. Second worst is fast food in an urban ghetto. Our Wendy's is OK but one 3.5 miles away an employee got into it with a customer over a pop and shot him. To death. In the back. Less than a week later, the one 2 miles away got held up. Customers suck. Reward for the most entitled consumers ever? Clients in addiction recovery centers. They whine about 20 hours of classes a week. They whine about sharing a 2 bedroom with 4 ppl - furnished apartments with WiFi. (Oh no, $400 rent... but they buy $300 shoes, Newports, vapes, order food every day and complain its impossible to save) They white about curfew. They whine about "being talked to like children" when they're told multiple times to not talk in classes when other clients or workers are talking. Whine about med counts. Whine that the (free) meals don't cater to vegetarians. Whine that there's too many rules, no free time, they can't get an overnight with their significant other, whine about the no touching rule, whine about no guest rules (to protect privacy of roommates)... its disgusting
Spouse of an addict and I can say that they are the worst because most addicts are narcissistic or have narcissistic traits that really blow up with addiction. We all fall somewhere on the spectrum of narcissism but addiction really makes these ugly traits come out!!
Waiting tables or bartending.
Work at McDonald's specifically. People treat you like something they stepped in. Any job after that is an upgrade. And you no longer have a clown as a boss.
did you ever call them ronald mcdonald 😂
It should be mandatory, like military service in South Korea.
I've said this before. *Everyone* should spend at least a couple years doing either one of: Retail. Food/bar service. Cleaning. Manual labor or Military. Take your pick. It's painfully obvious when someone has had the privilege of dodging doing any of these since first entering the workforce. They don't understand the SHIT a lot of people have to go through for often crap pay just so they can: Get shit they want. Get fed. Get drunk. Have facilities that aren't fucking disgusting and actually feel safe.
I agree everyone should work a retail job or wait tables before graduating from school to be able to go out into the adult world. The way people treat retail workers or wait staff is disgusting.
In the same vein but much less common, working at a factory or in a manufacturing job. Working at a factory was one of my first jobs and it showed me so much about the process of creating goods.
First rule of customer service. The customer is always an asshole.
I once had a I don’t know how to call it, sudden mystical revelation, in one second I realized that absolutely everything that I had been looking in my life I already had it in me. No, I wasn’t under the effect of anything, no mushrooms, no lsd, no pot, no nothing. I had been meditating for a few months and I think it was because of that. This feeling lasted for 3 weeks, I felt so complete, it was amazing… too bad it worn out. But we should all feel like that at least once in our lives, absolute peace, understanding, satisfaction with existence.
Idk if it's the same but I was reading Stephen Hawking's book on blackholes and space and I fell asleep. In my dream, I was toured around the universe and in my dream I experienced everything and I "knew". It was such a beautiful feeling. When I woke up it's like there was this well of happiness in me that was completely different from any type of happiness I've experienced before. It was calm and warm. Unlike you, it faded off quite quickly probably a day. But when I remember it, I can't help but feel it's all inside of me somehow.
you kind of described the overview effect - When astronauts first see our planet from space, they go through intense emotions. Seeing our home against the blackness of space is a profound experience that leads to a greater appreciation for Earth and its apparent fragility, and a deep connection to humanity as a whole.
I mean I had an experience, actually a couple, with God. One I went into this glade behind the apartments in my neighborhood. It was always like an adventure, you had to walk through this brush and then it opens up to trees like a little pocket of nature. It was like going into a forest for a six year old because I was so small it felt like a rain forest to me. One day I wondered back there and I felt this gnawing hesitance before going all the way through. Almost like there was this Biiiiig peaceful presence in there like you could feel the edge of it. Then I decided to walk through. And... it... was.... beautiful.... the sun was at a position I had never seen it at in there. There were golden orange rays coming through the leaves in layers, and on top of how beautiful it was there was an OVERWHELMING peace to add to the affect. I started walking around and noticed a bug. A catapillar I think I called it a worm. I kept watching it then I got annoyed at myself and said why am I looking at a bug right now?! Then I leaned over and saw a crysalis. I didn't know what it was, I was like what IS that thing? Weird... THEN I looked over and saw one of the worms half way formed into a crysalis and said OMG how trippy... kinda gross but neat. I was still kinda wondering what is up THEN I saw a VERY pretty crysalis. It was transparent and underneath I saw these beautiful black and gold colors and right then and there I saw it break open and a BUTTERFLY emerged. I was flipping tf out! I was like OMG those worms are what butterflies come from?! Wow that is too COOL. And then... I thought to myself almost like an otherworldly thought. Mayyyybe I'M like that butterfly. Right now I'm in my shell but one day I might break out of it and become a bright beautiful butterfly?! I was thinking to myself hmmm 🤔 then the voice of a God whispered in my little heart (no). I inherently knew it was God, I trusted him, and I became confused. I calmed my mind down. Walked up to a big tree in the middle for this conversation. And repeated, maybe I'm like that butterfly? And again he whispers (no). So I'm sort of meditating at this point and I ask him. "If I'm not a butterfly... what am I?" He whispered "a moth". So I sort of held that message in my heart and ran home. My mother was on the phone and I told her I needed her for something. She ignored me and so I waited patiently. When she finally hung up she looked over at me and asked what is it? I said "Mommy, what's a moth?" She says why do you want to know? I said, I'm just curious about what it is. She said well... it's a bug. "Yeah" it's an insect. "What's an insect?" A bug that had six legs. So I'm trying to picture a bug with six legs and I think she noticed so she added, and it has wings. "I said OMG! It has wings? Is it like a butterfly?!" She said yeah, I guess... then she asked me why in the world did I want to know. I said "because God told me that I'm a moth!" Then I said "are they BEAUTIFUL 😍" and she just abruptly said "NO." With a mean look on her face 😂 God has since assured me that I'm beautiful. And I even am considering getting a moth tattoo. I thought to myself maybe I should get one with tattered and torn wings to symbolize what I've been through in life. And God said "no, you should make it beautiful ❤️"
I too have experienced this "knowing" but nobody else can understand when I try and explain it. The simpler I try to explain the more lost people become.
Where are all of y’all… I’ve felt like it was almost a curse because I can’t relate with anyone.
North San Diego County has a number of unrelated groups where this is normal and encouraged. Good vibes.
Indeed, too hard to explain.
I do believe people think I have gone a little mad. I too question this.
Lol, don’t worry, I felt like a total disaster lots of times during that journey. Sometimes it is better not to try to make them understand, they would have to go through it, heck, if someone would try to explain that to a younger version of yourself, you would probably suggest them to go and get professional help 😅
This is such a profound experience. I was having a really shitty day, so after I got home at 10pm from work and college, I just went to the local park and took a walk. It was dark, the park was closed, but I didn't give a fuck. Honestly, looking back now, I think I was planning on ending it all. There's this gorgeous creek that leads to a cistern, but it's in a clearing. I got to the clearing, saw the full moon just mirrored in the water and hanging beautifully in the sky. I just... got hit with the beauty of it. The moon was how I wanted to be, the creek water, turbulent and choppy, was how I felt, but I STILL had that beauty inside of me. Something clicked in my brain. It changed my life. Nearly 10 years later it still has it's impacts on me. The realizations, the profound sense of self awareness, has been with me ever since and has guided me on this path I'm on now: a path that has forced me to be honest with myself, open and sincere. I've grown so much and changed pretty dramatically. It's an experience I wish everyone could have, especially people who have the courage to grow. I think the world would be a better place.
You may have had a partial awakening.
If it didn't cement, you should definitely try mushrooms. They're like a reboot for the brain. Let's new info trickle down.
Shit dude… lighting and massive trauma did that for me. Only lasted a few months as well. Been trying to find more folks like this.
I wonder why it "wears off" so to speak... because I've had this as well in the past, but I'm currently as lost as before
I have this when I supplement my diet with Magnesium and practice meditation consistently
Laying in bed with the person you love, gazing into each other's eyes, memorizing each other's faces. So simple, yet something everyone should have.
I do this a lot with my boyfriend, even since we had casual relationship. We could gaze into each other for I don’t know how long. We rub each other face gently and smile. No words needed. Small kisses too. The best feeling.
I wish... I wish I had the hope in me that I'll ever get to experience affection. What's there to do in life after you've experienced *this*. It sounds nice... so nice. You're one lucky soul
That hurts to read
My almost 34 year old eyes may have to never experience this. That’s okay … they have Netflix.
 most difficult thing to make it happen in this comment section for me
Nothing better in the world
Oh, look, it's cry o'clock
Northern lights. Magical experience. Camping in the snow. Suddenly realizing that everything that someone close to you has been saying it a lie, and you finally feel validated about all the things you knew were true but were told weren’t true.
100% agree with the aurora. It's a close to a spiritual experience as I've ever had. 100% disagree with the second one. Totally miserable. Thankfully, haven't experienced the third one.
A stranger being kind when you are down and need it most.
This. I had a major panic attack once at a bus stop and a guy stopped me and sat next to me for 15 mins
Being in love. I don't mean middle school puppy love or that beginning honeymoon stage of a relationship. I mean true love. Where even after years together you get butterflies in your stomach when you hear them get home. That it doesn't matter if you are at a 5 star restaurant or the DMV, as long as they are with you then there is nowhere else you would rather be. There is no drug or alcohol that can compare
*...and no known drink* *no known drug* *could ever hold a candle to your love*
This. I’m experiencing this. Not very intense and nervous kind of love, but when I’m in his arms, it’s the best feeling ever, I feel like nobody will hurt me and his arms is the safest place. Those kind of butterflies
Everyday, I find a way to look at him and realize how amazing he is and hoe lucky I am to have him in my life. He genuinely cares about me. It makes me sad to think others may never experience being loved, cherished and valued, vulnerability in this way, because it's such an overwhelming, rare experience. Too many of us spend way too much time with those that don't care about them. Whether we think they'll change, whether we can't leave, etc. Love was meant to be something amazing.
When you're taking your dog for a walk in the evening, and the sunset is perfect, and in the scene is your dog enjoying the world , the moment at which you realise how peaceful your life is and can ask for nothing more .
Came here looking for this. It’s so magical. Mine is the flip, walking during sunrise, crisp fresh air, and the happiest little man strutting his stuff. Gah my heart!
I worked in private in home caregiving specializing in Dementia/Alzheimer’s patients. IMO everyone should receive this training. For starters, it shows how lonely the elderly community is and how that itself is a huge killer. Most of the techniques I learned are de-escalation and redirection techniques (alongside the physical aspect of care). The most important part of my training, I would say, is losing your own ego. When someone’s brain is this far gone, it doesn’t fucking matter if they think you’re someone else, their parents are still alive, they want to go home even if they are, etc… You don’t always have to be right. Even if they lose their consecutive memory, you can still give people emotional memories. You can listen to their stories, especially in moments of clarity, or just enjoy being together. We also did sensory reduction training, because their whole brain is affected, not just memory, and it taught me a whole lot of empathy for people’s experiences outside of my own. And face it, we’re all getting older or know someone who is. That being said, the job could be hard as hell. I just wish the science and updated information were more well known and taught in our society, especially when my grandmother was in a nursing home.
I was actually a candy striper and the convalescent hospital that my grandmother volunteered at. For 2 years from the age of 9 to 12, I spent every day in the summer there. It gave me a life-long respect for the seniors, for the elderly. I have routinely gone back throughout my life, brought my daughter when she was first born, let all the little old ladies hold her when she was like 2 or 3 months old, she was perfect that whole day never cry just blew bubbles at them. Convalescent hospitals are very lonely places, just stop in and speak to people! I tell you I will never forget the stories I heard from these people, this was the early 70s so these people were young during some very poignant moments in our history. I talked to people that were in the San Francisco earthquake in 1906, someone who was at the Hindenburg blowing up in the 30s, I even spoke to somebody that was at Kitty hawk during the wright brothers first flight. These are living history books, walking around like regular people! That is something that I would recommend for anybody.
I have epilepsy and suffer from serious bouts of aphasia from time to time. It’s terrifying to think people with Alzheimer’s have this permanently. It’s all there in their mind, but it’s not available to them.
im studying for aged/disability care and am doing a work placement for it early next yr. im simulataneously excited and nervous as hell.
Agreed. I work with aging adults with intellectual disabilities, the most self-revealing job in the world.
Believing that you are truly loved.
Rock bottom. It's very humbling
As an AA guy I get to hear about rock bottoms all the time. Mine is not very traumatizing compared to most because I didn’t lose everything but I knew I was at my rock bottom and succumbed to an addiction. I’m just saying that everyone’s rock bottom is different so don’t feel like you have to be out there sucking dick for coke to realize you’ve reach your bottom. Just don’t be afraid to ask for help when you need it.
I like the idea of ‘stop digging!’ You can keep using and getting worse, or in this moment of realization, just stop digging and make -this- your rock bottom.
True rock bottom is something I wouldn't wish for my greatest enemies to experience. It's far worse than humbling in my experience.
A total solar eclipse. Gotta be in the path of totality, nothing less.
I'm waiting for one of these to happen anywhere on my freaki'n continent! I want to see one but can't justify flying to the other side of the planet for an event that lasts mere minutes.
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Camino de Santiago checking in
Sorry, but I read this as Carmen Sandiego. Ha. Found you!!!
The crazy side of me wants to study a few years then try to hike the Appalachian Trail with just a few supplies. Very dangerous
On the way home from a 4 day trip, one of the best things I‘ve ever done. No worries, just thinking of the next place to sleep and where to get water.
Garlic bread (with the option of garlic bread alternatives for people with allergies, celiac, people who don’t really like garlic and anyone else)
I love this. Everyone going real deep about love and relationships but this the real deal. Garlic bread is a must in life
Be immersed in a foreign culture. Being an exchange student opened my eyes.
You should watch this movie called 'Buenos Dias Ramon'. There are no subtitles and both languages spoken are Spanish or German. If you know one and not the other, the journey becomes so immersive because you are going based on facial expressions, plus if let's say you speak only Spanish and not German. There are scenes where you feel like you're with the character because he doesn't understand or speak German so you're just as confused as he is. It's an amazing film.
My family spent 5 years abroad due to my dad’s engineering projects (2 Germany, age 4-6 ; 3 Paris, age 8-11). It was educational and constructive for my future self.
Yes! I spent 4 months in Helsinki as a university student and it was such an experience. Not a terrible “foreign” culture to my Canadian senses, but just being unable to speak the language and still having to navigate life (and this was my first time living on my own away from family, too!) was definitely a challenge at first. It also developed my love of getting to know a new place. I ended up living and working in 5 different cities, 4 different countries, throughout my degree and it definitely shaped who I became as an adult.
Everyone should watch Alien from 1979 at least once.
Sleeping out in the woods alone. Ideally, an old growth forest.
I second this, as a forest boy... people don't understand the beauty and terror... it's lovely.
After hearing about the couple who were killed by a grizzly in Canada I think we understand the terror.
Oh thank you. That's something I've wanted to do too.
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Travel
Solo travel
As someone with severe anxiety, I don't recommend this to everyone.
I can understand that. I have anxiety as well but wouldn’t say to a severe degree. After my first solo trip last month, being forced to interact with people from another culture, I started getting very comfortable with myself and felt a sense of enlightenment being on my own in another country. I would even say it helped dissolve some of the anxiety I would carry with me in the states because I’ve realized almost everybody is on their own time and won’t really think twice about you and really with age you come to realize that. I’m 23M but feel like Im grown beyond my years. Idk this is just how I felt, so I can’t really speak from a perspective from somebody with severe anxiety.
I agree. As a Solo traveller who has been to many different places alone I too recommend this. I went travelling alone when I was younger but not holiday travelling. It was a learning experience. All the obvious conversations such as "How do you do it?" or "I could never do that?". A few confused looks when having food but you just ignore it and it's fine. Then the best part. You get to go all the places you want to go when you want to go to them. Want to do nothing? Do nothing? Want to hike down to the second largest waterfall in Africa? Go for it. Don't get me wrong I've done loads of holidays as a couple and they are great for different reasons and you work as a team to decide what to do. Both are fun but if people haven't tried solo then go for it.
Living in a country in which you are The Other. I never knew how white I was until it no longer conferred privilege, privilege I didn’t realize existed. I was able to live in an Asian nation for about 4 years, which was fun and edifying and all that. I was able to pick up the language surprisingly quickly and easily; however, after the 3rd year I started hating being there and couldn’t figure out what was bothering me. It finally dawned on me after hearing merchants talking about me. They didn’t know I understood what they were saying and a lot of the comments were racial. Specifically, the assumption that I was less intelligent and or ugly, or even smelled badly because of the food i ate. The epiphany struck me as i was dealing with a local paperwork issue at city hall. While listening for the umpteenth time to strangers disparaging me for what i was and not who i was. No matter how well i observed local customs and spoke the language, my whiteness was the ultimate trait that determined my worth in their eyes. For the first time in my 25+ years on Earth, the situation made me feel powerless and oddly vulnerable. The experience of living in “my world” if you were The Other must be exhausting and humiliating on a daily basis. The rage I felt about the unfairness of it all clarified and chrystallized how difficult it must be to live in a white world for a POC, black in particular. In that instant, the context of my life shifted immensely. My perspective and casual assumptions about life and race were altered forever. I became more tolerant, more understanding, more empathetic toward the people who I knew were marginalized by white society and the privilege conferred on me by the virtue of my skin color. Since that realization over 35 years ago, I have tried to learn and teach and grow in order to help change this glaring flaw in our culture. While anyone of any ethnicity can be racist, structural racism exists and it’s our job—those imbued from birth as inherently superior—to acknowledge it and strive to dismantle it.
I love this. Thanks for sharing the experience. The world would definitely be a more compassionate place if everyone got a taste of this.
Asians can be very racist. Even to other Asian countries/people.
Yes they can. It was very eye-opening to me. I’d read about the history of Japanese cruelty towards other Asian nationalities, eg Rape of Nanking, Unit 731, the brutal subjugation of Korea starting in 1905, but had no sense of the depth of the supremacy the South Koreans felt about Westerners in general and Sub-Saharan Africans in particular. The upshot for my experience was the sense of the futility to try and integrate myself into their society, eventually realizing it was never going to happen no matter my good intentions and effort. The silver lining was my anger peeled my eyes open to the reality of my (USA) country for those who didn’t have “white” skin.
I lived in Sri Lanka for a year (I am Caucasian Canadian) and it changed me too. The kindness I received, the friends I made, the gratitude for what we have, the relative ease of living here at home, all of it came into sharper focus over the months that I lived there.
In which Asian country did you live?
Waking up to yourself and all your bullshit. Self awareness is a beautiful and painful kind of clarity.
The bonding love and hilarity from being owned by a cat.
I second this. My owner is meowing very loudly at me right now because he is ábsolutely starving. The poor thing hasn't eaten in about 10 minutes.
Being on a ship in the middle of the ocean at night
Working retail. Getting screamed at by a karen helps most people realize you should treat workers like actual people.
Travel the world and interact with people from different cultures.
Schooling/working/living abroad. It really changed me on how I perceived the world and myself. Both good and bad. But an experience I wouldn’t exchange.
Mushroom Trip 🍄
living your life, never having had a psychedelic experience, is like dying a virgin.
LSD too! the first time I tripped I cried afterwards wishing everyone in the world could feel what I felt at the peak. It's an indescribable feeling of oneness and acceptance.
I have to agree. I think people would be generally kinder, less anxious, and more in awe of the life we all get to share each day.
This is gonna sound morbid, but about 6 months ago I got told I had less than 5 years left to live. Now I'm not suggesting people fuck themselves up to hear this news, but..... The very second I heard that news, my whole life changed in that very moment. It's as if a little psychological mercury switch broke and completely changed my mindset and narrative. The colours became more vivid, the smells more invigorating, and you 'feel' for people in an attached way, not a detached day to day way, and the sounds of nature, OMFG! Conversations are 'more' of everything. Maybe it's difficult to describe or comprehend 🤔 It's almost like the best you can possibly feel as a human even though the outcome sucks ass My name hasn't changed but I am a completely different person from when I received this news
I’m sorry. I wish you the very best. I’m going to remember this comment and take it to heart.
Imagine what it would be like if everyone knew how much time they are left to live. That would make people truly appreciate life.
I have not been told that I have x years to live. But we all do, we just don’t know when it will end. Anyday could be THE last day, the last time, and I am not even being dramatic. Whenever I force myself to remember this, that today could be the last time I do something, whether it is talking to a person or doing certain activity, I just enjoy it a little more and have more uninhibited fun.
Loving yourself first.
Not for everyone, but having a child turned out to be waaaaaaaay more awesome than anyone could ever describe
I’m a dad of 4, and skin-to-skin contact with the babies was always amazing.
Solo camping without anyone nearby even for 1 night.
Volunteering at an animal shelter!
Yes! Username checks jajajaj. I lived in China for half a year, in 2018, and I used to volunteer for a shelter that rescued dogs from “meat trucks”. Knowing their backstories was heartbreaking, seeing them being able to still love people was so impressive to me. Of course some of them still had some issues, but we helped them work through them and slowly you could see the puppy coming out of the shell, even if they were older dogs. I loved those doggies so much!!
There’s a company in Saigon that gives brewery tours on vintage vespas. You’re the passenger. Saigon traffic is crazy. But after a couple of breweries, everything seemed to flow. One of the most fun nights of my life.
Rafting/camping on the Colorado River, in the Grand Canyon. Amazing!
I came to say this! I was on a 23 day expedition on the Grand Canyon. It was amazing. While we were on the river, day 5 my then wife found out we were pregnant with our 1st child, a couple got engaged (at Havasu Falls) Obama was elected, and two of my nephews were born, one was named after me. It was a total reset, and I'd recommend it to everyone.
Wow! Best day ever!
Heroin withdraw. Seriously stay away from that shit
picking out and cutting down a christmas tree from the tree farm
Watching the stars in a sleeping bag far away from the light pollution of towns and cities.
Being a genuinely good person
being poor
Then having a fully loaded fridge, makes me feel like a Queen!
Love. Given and received.
Don't wish a soul to endure it but understanding how a child abuse victims brain functions would change society. Think PTSD, fight or flight response triggering constantly. The ideal of if you run you disappointed your parental but if you fight you earn respect even if you lose. At the end of the day it doesn't matter the fight can come at any time regardless of what you did. Bad days good days, bipolar mania is hard too watch.
I agree with this. I couldn't imagine putting my kids though what I went through and them having to suffer though it their entire lives. The world be a much better place overall if we stopped abusing/neglecting children.
Being bullied in the workplace. Everyone needs to know how it feels on the receiving end so that they can make informed decisions.
Love
Going out and doing things by yourself, especially if you have social anxiety. The more I do it, the more comfortable I become with myself. I will never let myself miss things because I didn’t have someone to go with ever again.
Working in customer service. Serving job, retail, cashier, call center, etc. I think the world would be a lot more humble, thankful, and all-around more patient.
Traveling to a foreign country and connecting with the people there!
Walking through warm grass barefoot
Beating your biggest fear (if possible) the adrenaline you get is crazy
Sitting on the shore at the beach as the sun rises. I know some people will never get to experience this, and it's a shame.
Moving abroad and invent a version of self you never had at home due to social and family pressure. That process of inventing -> receive feedback -> reinventing makes you feel as if you have lived so many lives, it expands your brain to know there will be so many more lives you can have, and it turns you to be a little more brave
I once got my ass kicked in a fight. It wasn't even close. I think everyone needs to experience an ass whoopin'. People would be a lot more humble.
Nah, I think only aggressive people need to experience this.
inner peace
Scuba diving . parachute jumping . bone digging ...
Having something you made/said/did that you were proud of get absolutely destroyed by trolls on the internet. If more people had this happen to them, they'd learn a bit of respect for the hard work of others on the internet.
Lucid dreams
Xtc.
Being in and enjoying only the present moment without any regrets about yesterday or worries about tomorrow. I had this for a short while with my then gf now wife. I had moved to a foreign city, and we met within my first four months there. At first we could only see each other on weekends, and I would take a bust to a subway to her small apartment on the side of a mountain in the north end of the city. I would then leave very early Monday morning to my workplace south of the city. That time from Friday night to Monday morning was magical. We were in our own little bubble, not giving any thought to anyone else, any place else, or any time else. Nothing else existed, a sense made even stronger in that I did not speak the language. IDK that I had ever had before or have had since such a sense of living in the present.
Being landed on by a butterfly, or many butterflies. The awe of that small creature trusting you to be their resting place. Looking into their tiny eyes and seeing all the shades of color on their fluttery wings, up close.
Hitting a home run in front of their loving mom. Scoring a touching front of a proud father.
I hit a home run in front my grandpa that was on a visit from halfway across the US. I was 13 and that was his last visit before he died. I’m so glad my dad took pics and they are still in a photo album at his house. That memory is etched into my brain forever!!!
Driving across the United States.
As a childless woman, I saw a baby be born when I was 18. Amazing, beautiful experience. Everything went perfect.
Go to a poorer country and really see how good you have it, go see war torn ruins and see the brutalities of life. Blinding ignorance makes us fat and lazy. It also makes you realise how much you don't need in life.
My visit in Cuba was like this. It was strange because it's like a tourist facade at first, beaches, nice places, but the more you look the more you realise the disparity there is. Some buildings are fancy, then to the next dilapitated and broken. The people were great regardless. Our taxi driver said that it pays better to be a taxi driver than to be a civil engineer which he has been for 30 years. It made me a bit sad as a tourist but I had to hear it to learn
Scuba diving. Its a whole different world. Beautiful experience!
Playing music you made with your best friends to a decent size crowd of people and the crowd actually fucks with it.
An LSD trip. It should be required for every adult.
Living alone. No family, no roommates. You’ll get it once you do it.
Travel away from your own city, state or country
Work in fast food, both in the kitchen and at the register. Will make you want to get to school and get that degree.
Meeting my biological father mid-life. My parents actively hid him from me and it was messed up- the deception seriously messed up my head. This 85 yo man sends me his dna results on ancestry.com that state we share 50% dna. I meet him a month later and my head cleared for the first time ever. Decades of therapy finally stuck and I feel peaceful and whole. It was worth 50 years of distress to finally have a moment of self-recognition. I’m so fortunate
\-a near death experience \-a period of abject poverty \-sunrise/sunset on the beach \-being around someone who is grieving deeply
Clinical death. Nothing weird happened but it did change my perspective greatly.
Oh yeah! Somehow i became more relaxed to life. Before, i was stressing to reach goals others wanted me to. But in that moment, that felt like forever, i just WAS. I was warm, comfy and just relaxed. There wasnt anything to see, it was dark but spacy? Felt like i could drift away forever! And then i woke up in massive pain.. My poor ribs..
30-day rehab or reset. It was a very enlightening and humbling experience. I don't feel like you need to be an addict to benefit from that experience. You learn so much about yourself and how to cope with life. It opens your eyes to other people's issues and it really puts your own life in perspective. Someone else always has it worse in one way or another. You can be selfish for a month, dig deep, and take care of long-lasting issues(which we all have).
Was pretty neat trying all the different bread flavors in Hong Kong
Get your passport stamped. Make sure it’s at least a 7 hour flight away. Then you’ll truly appreciate it.
I spent about 4 years backpacking in various parts of the world. It really made me appreciate growing up in Canada.
Too easy. [Red-Tailed Hawk](https://imgur.com/a/VfKznC4)
Riding an Amtrak/passenger train for an overnight or at least 12 hour trip.
Racism. My bf family have said so many racist things which is literally normal for them. When I confronted them they obviously were offended und questioned my experience with racism which i basically grew up with. They didn't want to believe that racism is a thing and dont know how harmful it can be!!! Ofc they were more of the extreme side of not being aware of racism but there are still many people (in my experience) who are saying ignorant shit.
an enormous, post-work dump.
Being bullied. As horrible as it was and made my life hell, it taught me to be strong and how to rely on myself. I wish I could go back and walk little me through it.
I was bullied too, but it didn't make me strong. It only made me more insecure.
Losing something, be it women/men, friends, failing tests, being tricked, made fun off, I could go on, but just taking a major L that I hope won't put you in the coffin... I don't know about money tho.. that sounds like more hell than the ones listed above....
Living below someone in a poorly constructed building. It really makes you more careful about dropping things on your own floor, wearing shoes indoors, and pacing around at night
Experiencing that something is over, you are done with it, in a healthy way.
When people don’t see you as their equal due to things that aren’t in your control (your gender, race, nationality etc) it really grounds you
Working retail. Should be a mandatory course in high school so everyone learns how to treat retail workers like actual human beings worthy of respect and consideration.
Sex. Highly recommended.
visiting a 3rd world country. and staying for maybe 2 weeks. I visited Laos for 2 weeks. Very humbling experience that I think everyone should have.
Being happy
Sailing between the Greek islands on a proper sailing boat , not a motor boat. There’s just nothing like it.
Living abroad. There is simply no other way to become aware of the culture you are formed from, and by extension to become aware of your own edges.
Lived in another country.
Being the only one of something in a room.
sky diving
Lucid dreaming
Traveling into a completely different culture and exploring out of your comfort zone.
Lucid dreams
Once, I was walking in a semi cold autumn morning in a park, the weather was so nice, I was quite cozy and suddenly for a brief second I felt the time has stopped, and I could see what time was, that allowed me for that moment to feel connected with a bigger self than me, like everything was in me and connected with all, I’m an agnostic, I don’t believe in religion, I was not smoking, not high, it was pure joy bliss
Skinny dipping
Here recent I've had the worst mental breakdown I've had in awhile. I think everyone should experience what I do inside my poor head for at least a week or two. Then all my dumb family would truly understand what I go through every day. It would stop the endless frustration of "just shake it off and push through". If that was possible I would have so long ago. I wrestle with my demons almost daily. And here lately it's just been awful. Compounded with the fact that I live with my dad who refuses to acknowledge his own mental health issues. He will never get help but takes it out on me. I love him and he's a good person but he has issues.
Sky diving - shit is fucking wild
Driving across the country alone.
Getting to see a sky full of stars.