Was begining to worry... but alas you have cured me of that.I am happy to see life is swallowing you with its festivities.Meanwhile, I have a mystery of the universe to question you about. Are people (friends, family etc.)always looking out for themselves like the dogmatic metaphor "its a dog eat dog world" (yes, i know, bad pun). They are willing to decieve, manipulate, use and hurt you if their quest to protect their self-interest requires it. Or, are there also people out there who can give without thinking of return, without prejudice, ambition or malcontent. Yes, I really have reached a low point, use and abuse will do that. Do not dithy out a response of hope simply for the optimistic boost i so desparately need. You will not convince me. If these gratified creatures do indeed exist, if you have met one, please tell me. If not, i surrender my quest to find them. As Stoppard said so omnipitantly "We can always count of self-interest as a predictable factor."
i think that overall the answer is no. we're ruled by self interest (even our attempts at altruism are little more than a way to make ourselves feel better.) i guess that all comes from the fact that in spite of wanting to, we're not capable of feeling exactly what another person is feeling - we can only experience what is directly coming to us, as filtered by our life experiences. empathy only goes so far.
saying that - i believe that it is possible to find someone whose self interest is not only compatable, but completely complementary to yours. you can fulfill the deepest needs for love and comfort with the right friend. i have one such friend who i know loves me, and i know that i love him. we care for and about each other, and doing that validates both of us. the role of 'carer' and 'caree' (if, indeed, that is a word) swap quite frequently...
i think THAT is the person that you're looking for!
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i think that overall the answer is no. we're ruled by self interest (even our attempts at altruism are little more than a way to make ourselves feel better.) i guess that all comes from the fact that in spite of wanting to, we're not capable of feeling exactly what another person is feeling - we can only experience what is directly coming to us, as filtered by our life experiences. empathy only goes so far.
saying that - i believe that it is possible to find someone whose self interest is not only compatable, but completely complementary to yours. you can fulfill the deepest needs for love and comfort with the right friend. i have one such friend who i know loves me, and i know that i love him. we care for and about each other, and doing that validates both of us. the role of 'carer' and 'caree' (if, indeed, that is a word) swap quite frequently...
i think THAT is the person that you're looking for!
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