What even is “normal”?
We’re constantly shown pictures of what “normal” is through media, but is that accurate? And more importantly, is it helping us … at all?
Francesca Martinez has cerebral palsy (although she prefers the term “wobbly,” which you’ll hear in the video below). Feelings of being “abnormal” or “faulty” seeped into her everyday life and drained her of creative energy.
If the world treats you like a mistake or an exception, how can you find your value?
But then she had a realization: Who really is normal, anyway?! Reality is completely warped on every kind of media platform imaginable. Everyone is told to push toward ideals that are often impossible, unhealthy, or unappealing. Who needs that!
She thought about how this pretend idea of “normalcy” relates to our everyday life. We’re not made out of cookie cutters, but we’re often treated that way, especially by the products we buy.
Think about our shopping carts, our TV screens, our status updates — how much of it has to do with creating a fictional version of our own individual reality? Could the idea of “normal” be something that’s actually working against us?
Could “normal” actually be a distraction from the stuff that really matters?
Listen to Francesca’s excellent speech on how it relates to the way we buy stuff, how it’s affecting climate change (?!), and how accepting ourselves as we are is actually one of the most important things you can do. Like for real.
I just have to quote the last bit of her speech because it is wonderful:
“We won the lottery in life and life is such a beautiful, precious gift, and we have to savor it, because as far as we know, we are the only living things in the universe, so it is our duty to protect it.” — Francesca Martinez
Share if you agree with this beautiful perspective!
