Is Original Thought Dead?

So I spend a lot of time reading opinion pieces. This isn't to say that I don't stay current in events that happen, just that when I want to expand my brain, I do it by comparing my thoughts to others. I firmly believe that if you don't ever challenge your own beliefs you don't really believe it, you're just regurgitating someone else's thoughts and ideas.

It's almost a year since I went from 2 player to 1 player and I'm constantly looking at past decisions and thought processes, deciding what's worth keeping around and what needs to be kicked to the mental curb.. So yesterday I came across an opinion piece written by a gal who is just as scatterbrained as me, but in her own unique way. Similar in age, trying to find her best fit in the world. She was writing about how she's sick of listicles about what people are looking for in relationships, and how they mostly consist of basic foundation pieces that Any ::Healthy:: relationship should have: Mutual Respect, Boundaries, Feeling Safe to Express Yourself, Honesty, Faithfulness, etc.. and if that's your list, you fail at life. (She was nicer. Kinda). She argued that when looking at the people that surround you, you should probably be more choosey than just "Treats me Like an Actual Person". Then in pure irony, she went to list some very specific to her things she looks for in the people she spends her time with.

Her article spoke to me, so I wrote a quick little sentence of appreciation in the comment section. One little sentence and apparently it angered someone enough to accuse me of not thinking for myself. I snarked back, but the accusation has stuck with me.

English has existed since about the 5th Century according to Wikipedia, and we are living in the 21st. That is a long time for a language to exist. And before that? Language has been around as long as people have, and each and every one of us have had thoughts to be expressed to others. (Traditionally referred to as conversation.) Are we really supposed to assume that no one has ever shared a thought with us? I remember being 19 or 20, and having this terrific idea for cats that would let them get petted, even when no one was home. I kept it close to the vest, because I was afraid someone would steal it and make it a reality before I could come up with the materials. Guess what... It exists. And I'm not the one who brought it to the market. Someone else had the same idea as me, and was able to make it a reality. Good on them!

So here's the rub. If I read a story, or hear a song that makes my lungs catch, is it wrong to want to share it? If someone else is able to perfect craft something that causes me to leap with appreciation that someone else out there has felt what I have felt, do I really need to try to come up with my own words? Why? I'm not talking about plagiarism here, because word theft is still theft, but if someone else has the words and has shared them, why is it such a crime to share them as well? I see my friends sending full or partial lyrics to the ones they're dating, and even recently I had a dear friend share with me the artist Meg Myers because Myers is intense and helped her through some shit. (Total side tangent, I love her. The first time I heard her song Monster I felt like I already knew the lyrics. Her song Desire ripped strips of my soul from me.) Besides wanting to roll our general eyes at the mooneyed couples being all goopy, no one thinks twice about this common practice.

Why is that more acceptable that saying "Hey! You put a lot of thought into this, I can relate to this."? I know. I know. Trolls are trolls, and you should never feed them, but this isn't just because of some one off. All the time, people are stuck with words in their throats, not sure quite how to form our thoughts and emotions, because they either sound too much or not enough so we stay silent. Instead of accusing others of being robots who can't think for themselves, why not appreciate that even if you personally might not agree with the thought being shared, be happy that someone found relief by someone else's words?



So here we are, at the end of my train of thought, and I think I was able to get it all out in a way that makes sense, but here's my big flaw. I do not know how to end this. Or really anything I write. Conclusions are my kryptonite. Maybe when I'm next feeling like pretending I'm deeper than I really am, I'll spin it into a positive, but for now, I'm going to say Until Next Time! and end with a smiley.

Until Next Time!! :)