Are You Really Selfish?? Rethink..

I don’t know if I’m eligible to touch this sensitive topic but freedom of expression allows me to do so, hence I dare to. I think selfishness is overly misinterpreted. Many times people are blamed for being selfish and I don’t understand what’s wrong with being selfish because everyone has a different definition of it.

I love Ayn Rand’s illustration in The Fountainhead the most but I’m not sharing what she exactly said because the book deserves to be read by every sensible person (If you are reading this post, maybe you are one of them 🙂 ). A few years ago, I was lucky enough to kick my laziness aside and read the book. I don’t know a suitable adjective that can describe the effect it had on my perspective towards people.

When I say, sometimes, I would like to choose to suffer over cherishing the comforts in life, people think I’m mad but the actual motive behind it can be a bit deeper. The pain might be less when we choose how we want to suffer rather than the life throwing it at us. Expected suffering is always alleviating. Not that we have control over our unforeseen tough times but as an optimist (that’s what I think I am), I would like to assume that I do have.

When I make a clearly denying face to my friends who want to eat out all the time, I give them all the reasons in the world to eat at home because the selfish side of me comes out and urges me to listen to my own stomach first.

When I say I can’t always hang out with my friends, I have a million thoughts drilling my brain and struggling to prioritize things, I can be seen as someone who doesn’t want to come out of my shell. But how can I tell you that I have a task of making a pearl for which I have to be inside my closed oyster? (And I assume we all know the value of the pearl) So we should call the oyster selfish, right?

When my friend cares more about her job over her health and calls herself selfish all the time, I quite didn’t understand how is that an apt title to her. But when I think more, I understand the point that her definition can vary from mine which might be good in a way. Priorities change drastically with time and we should too if necessary, remembering the rule that we should be happy even though we get sick.

So, don’t you think I have a point that we all should be selfish in our own ways and everyone should respect our species?