I'm sitting at a coffee shop in the upper French Quarter in New Orleans, waiting for a friend to wake up, and I'm overhearing a conversation.
It's three businessmen here for a conference and they're clearly all trying to impress each other, and they're all coming off as super fake and trying way too hard.
It got me thinking, we all know of cases of an outwardly jolly guy who committed suicide, or the guy with the luxury everything who is so deep in debt that oil barons would have to pool their money to help.
We all present modified outward images, sometimes because people haven't earned the right to look closely at us, sometimes because we don't want to worry them, sometimes because we want people to associate us with fun times and not problems...
What I'm most wondering right now is: how much do others feel like we do and how much can we truly differ? No adult feels like one at all times, really... We all seem to just "do what we have to" and that's what makes us responsible adults, no one is as solid and bulletproof as they try to portray, we all get desperate, sad, and scared.
So, how often are we really in the same room as someone wearing the same suit of armor we are?
How much do we go out of our way to hide the weaknesses we all share? And how many people are devoid enough of empathy that they'd use those against us? (I certainly know several).
Is the number large enough to justify us covering up our insecurities? Or, is it just a concession we make to make living in a society possible (we can't all be responsible for each other's personal problems)?
Anyway, pardon my rambling, my friend is up. I'm off to enjoy the city.