Normal

Are you normal? Am I normal? I hope not! Many times I’ve wondered who draws those lines that determine what is normal and what is not. As I started this essay, that one word suddenly shifted my thinking process into high gear! Just think of how the definition of that one word has changed in just the past decade. It’s hard for most of us to find “wiggle room” in that one word, yet all of us do! Our “normal” life style in today’s world makes walking a straight line, in each of our worlds, very difficult as most find that line changes with every step. Beside, who or what could you compare yourself to?
I feel that how far we allow others to judge us is determined by the size of the box that we allow those others to build for us and try to put us in. Most seem to want to build the boxes for others, but get up tight when they think others are trying to build boxes for them. Most put more guide lines on others, they are more judgmental of those “other people!”
My Grandma, my guiding light, used to judge everyone by her interpretation of how they “should” be acting. She had the highest standards of any person I have ever known and sadly everyone was judged by her standards! Many times I remember her pointing to someone and saying; what they are doing is not normal, or at times she would tell me I should learn to think more normal thoughts! She loved me, but in her mind she had a picture of a box she thought I should be living in. Of course the box that I pictured in my mind had a very different look. Much of Grandma’s normal had been established in horse and buggy days. My life style moved much faster!
Most of today’s religions were built on things that were considered normal back in those horse and buggy days, or even donkey days. Many expect us to live our lives as lives were lived a thousand or more years ago, the “though shall or shall not’s” days of old! Most are still trying to draw straight lines and boxes that they tell us we must use in our today’s world. But, many like me find it difficult to walk those narrow lines or live in those small boxes. Many of those teachers of religion today are finding that it is easier to tell someone else how they should be living their lives than living their teachings themselves.
I have found many things that effect our outlook on normality, the region we live in makes a big difference, as does our religion, our music, our neighbors, our belief in our self, that list goes on and on. I want you to think about this; if our God created each of us to be different, how can any of us be normal?
I truly believe that throughout our lives, we are continually being pushed one way or another by a world trying to make us over to its interpretation of normal. A world trying to keep us in a small box! After living all these many years, I have yet to meet that person I could look upon as normal, thinking back , not even as NEAR normal! I believe all that normal stuff is nothing more than an invisible, ever-changing goal that others set for us, but will never be reached by us as long as we are mortal!