(this comment brought to you by severe sleep-deprivation; I make no promises about sense or coherence)
But I am weary, weary, weary of being constantly made fun of by colleagues for trying to do the right thing, for trying to think about what the right thing is in situations, for trying not to be selfish; I am tired of getting snide comments like "oh you're so virtuous"
I get this, so much. When I started my new job people were doing it over the fact that I *reuse waste paper & envelopes*, FFS! There are some people around whom I cannot order meat-free food without a rant about how I'm so good and they could never...
The way I tend to think about it is that it's their guilt talking. They know on some level that they should be living more reflective and considerate lives, but they can't quite be bothered, or they have overriding concerns; so when we remind them that it is possible - even make it look easy by integrating it into the fabric of our lives - we make them feel so very guilty.
Which is stupid - the gods know I can be selfish and lazy with the best of them - I don't think that I'm better than anyone, or that anyone has any reason to feel guilty around me; I just do the thing that seems best in the situation that I'm in. If I have any virtue at all, it's just pathological overthinking!
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Date: 2010-05-14 03:12 pm (UTC)But I am weary, weary, weary of being constantly made fun of by colleagues for trying to do the right thing, for trying to think about what the right thing is in situations, for trying not to be selfish; I am tired of getting snide comments like "oh you're so virtuous"
I get this, so much. When I started my new job people were doing it over the fact that I *reuse waste paper & envelopes*, FFS! There are some people around whom I cannot order meat-free food without a rant about how I'm so good and they could never...
The way I tend to think about it is that it's their guilt talking. They know on some level that they should be living more reflective and considerate lives, but they can't quite be bothered, or they have overriding concerns; so when we remind them that it is possible - even make it look easy by integrating it into the fabric of our lives - we make them feel so very guilty.
Which is stupid - the gods know I can be selfish and lazy with the best of them - I don't think that I'm better than anyone, or that anyone has any reason to feel guilty around me; I just do the thing that seems best in the situation that I'm in. If I have any virtue at all, it's just pathological overthinking!