What’s really going on? January 21,2013 was Martin Luther King, Jr holiday, also the day of a 2nd Inauguration for President Barack Obama, where Beyonce sang the national anthem of our country. For me, this day clearly said, ‘You can be anything you want to be”. For many others, there became an uproar and criticism about Beyonce lip-syncing her rendition of the national anthem. Really?
It’s very interesting that recent news articles have verified that lip syncing at major events is not a new thing. Articles even list other celebrities who have done the same. Are we now going after the others? No, we’re not. It’s something about Beyonce, and only Beyonce, that causes an uproar when something like this occurs. Why is that? I guess people really do hate to see you at the top. But what are we so afraid of?
What I’ve learned is, even when we choose to compare ourselves to celebrities, the more genuinely happy we are with ourselves, the less need we have to quickly criticize others. The less we have a need to see others fail, make mistakes, or show that they are not perfect. True, it’s very easy to comment about celebrities, criticize them, and laugh when they goof because after all that comes with the celebrity territory which makes it ok, right? Wrong. When you find yourself feeling relieved and even satisfied, or secretly excited, because somebody has shown their imperfection or because they made a mistake, our response has nothing to do with the individual but has so much to do with us. Whether or not you realize the importance of that revelation is perhaps another article, another day, and unfortunately for some, another lifetime. But let’s try anyway, to recognize the importance today.
I’ve also learned that the ability to have a genuine happiness for another individual is much more liberating than the feelings of envy, jealousy, and hatred. Not only are these feelings three of the worst to ever experience, but they lead to so many devastating consequences from violence and death to mental and physical ailments. If you never become wise enough to recognize the connection, shame on you.
When we underestimate the power that our tiny little criticism has about someone, we devalue our own power and keep ourselves at the bottom of the barrel. Yes, have your opinions if you must, but out of respect for yourself, be truthful with yourself about the root from which those opinions come. You will very likely never meet Beyonce or anybody you easily criticize and they will never know about your crab mentality, but even if one of those things actually did transpire, still worse than that is the truth of your choice to live such an unproductive life. I know. I know….But everybody does it? It’s the best part of social networking? No…its an unspeakable waste of the most delicate existence of this world….life. Perhaps we should get a real one and be the Beyonce at what we do, because truthfully, if you can stand to admit to yourself, Beyonce is one of the best at what she does. And even if you don’t think so, it’s still okay to simply be happy for her and others anyway. Keeping negative comments to yourself and simply being happy for others in their success…it’s not as painful as you think. In fact, it’s the one healer of the many ailments of this world.
How long can you go without a negative comment of someone else and instead use that energy to address who you see in the mirror? Now THAT’s where the pain comes in. Something to think about.
Tawana
