Steampunk Hands Around the World 2017 – Awareness

Image Courtesy of Mr. XPK

One of the many nice benefits in our community is the ease with which we can meet other people. There are so many options and opportunities available from blogs to social media to forums to events. Each one not only provides us with a bit of information about something going on in the world of steampunk, and a chance to reach out and interact with others, but it also gives us a window into other people.

This small view can show us the skills that someone knows, and other perspectives on a topic. Sometimes, they give us a bit of insight into what life is like for others, and the trials and triumphs they face.

All of this enhances our lives by increasing our awareness, and hopefully our understanding, of the larger world around us. If we are fortunate, we learn a bit more about ourselves, too. We might even enhance those positive traits which could use a little work.

With that awareness, we can see how people are like people everywhere. We have similar wants, needs, and desires. Some people remind us of our younger, less experienced selves, and others are people who we’d like to be when we get older.

We realize that everyone faces trials and hardships, just like we do. Some seem trivial to us, others make us glad it’s not one of our issues. We may see people and think their lives must be so wonderful and exciting, but we don’t see the hardships they face each day.

As we get to know people in the community and are interested in them and their lives, the world can feel much smaller. Events in the news make us reach out to those people, ensuring they are OK.

Hopefully, that awareness of others leads to more awareness of ourselves. What are the good things about us that makes others smile, and which can lift our won spirits when times get rough? What are the challenges we face, and how can we overcome them by learning how others resolve their own trials, and conversely, how might others learn from us? When someone else needs a helping hand, how do we extend it? When someone offers their assistance, how do we accept it?

When we disagree with an opinion or a belief, we can try to see other perspectives, at least to try to understand. When something really gets our dander up, our awareness of other can help us see why we are bothered so much.

And something that may make us yell in anger first, then laugh at ourselves, is when we see something in another person we just cannot stand, only to finally realize that we are just looking in a mirror, with a light cast on ourselves.

Awareness can make us better people, help us see more of the world existing around us, and be part of something larger than ourselves.

 

Follow along each day as new entries are added to the Official Link List and join the discussions on the Facebook event page.