Somehow, today was quite a reflective day.


Being a emotionally-sensitive person for the majority of my life, I have, as a matter of fact, rarely seen people whose sensitivity is way beyond what I have.
So today, it was quite a surprise when I noticed some could took what I believed was just a small, accidental gesture so seriously.

Do some people take it too personally?
Have I been so used to believe that people can be as comical as I am, in most situations?
Has it been such a bad day for many around me, even when for me, it hasn't been so?
Am I simply turning insensitive?



Anyway, let's discuss a hypothetical scenario.


You are on an adventure inside a jungle in your trio, when the three of you stumble upon a bear cub, without its mother.
Having fun, your friends fool around with the bear cub, poking it around with tree branches and throwing some small rocks at it. It's borderline harassment.
But maybe not, maybe your friends are simply trying to play around with the cub, just being themselves.
For a moment you think of joining them to play with the cub. But somehow you know something does not look right. Before you can react or stop them, though, the bear mother appears, obviously looking displeased.
Sensing from what probably sounds like a whimper from the cub, the mother's protective instinct switches on, growling and preparing to pounce on us.
Of course, without another word, the three of you run for your lives.
But you trip on a jutting root of a tree, causing you to fall face-first on the ground.
By just the few seconds that have passed, you recover, at the same time realising you are falling behind your other friends and the growl of the bear mother imminent.
You turn back, and see it just a few metres away, getting ready to unleash its rage on you.
You know there is no escaping it. So you close your eyes, and as you steel yourself to meet your doom, three thoughts flash inside your head. regarding who is at fault really.

1). You blame your friends, believing that because they were not sensitive enough to not provoke the bear cub (albeit unknowingly), you have to meet your end even though you know you do not deserve to take on what supposedly was their punishment.
2). You blame yourself because of your slow response time. If only your senses were fast enough, you probably could have told them to be more careful and this whole bloody (pun intended) incident would not have happened in the first place.
3). You blame the bear, for being such a close-minded being, for being such a cruel creature that just decides to vent its anger unknowingly on an innocent-bystander.

But then again,

1). Your companions are not really at fault, actually. They probably were just careless but they actually meant no harm to the bear cub, much less to you.
2). You are not really at fault either because, well, you probably just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.
3). The bear mother is also not exactly in the wrong, because it was just naturally reacting to its maternal instinct, without holding it personally against you. It was just that it thought you were probably the one making it personal instead, and so it just reacted.



TL;DR, it was all probably just a case of misunderstanding.
But after the damage is done, can saying and clarifying things salvage anything good out of the situation?
Was there a need to defend yourself actually, if you actually could?
By doing that, could you have made sure that you are not actually retaliating and in the aftermath, causing even more collateral damage?



Maybe by saying nothing and just letting yourself get hit, it is actually for the better.
After all, one collateral is better than two. Or more.
Maybe letting your actions speak is a much better option.
As long as you are not simply doing nothing.
Because doing nothing has its consequences too.

02:36
Up, up, and away!