Hopelessly Correct--the Price of Being Right

 It happened; the end of the world didn't begin any sooner than it ended. There was no warning, no sign of impending demise. Not even a single death throe graced the mighty Earth. It ended.
    Just.
        Like.
            That.
    Time was irrelevant--time was a perception of human sense, to pass between bridges of activity. With no brides, time lost its purpose.
    That's what we'd done--all of us, be it millworkers, miners, show hosts, farmers, or even unborn children.
    It's amazing how the more we searched for our purpose, the further we strayed from the truth beneath our very feet. Our purpose and mission. To be.
    Potential. Compassion. Any dream we could dream we were meant to pursue. But when made too easy, when no incentive presented itself, we festered in our cushioned existence. We never saw the end coming.
    Even if we could... we would never look for it.
    I told you once, didn't I? What it was like to stand in eternity? The dream we all used to seek. Immortality.
    And I stood long at the edge of the abyssal void of forever before I returned to you, and begged you to come with me.
    I strode up to you, at a small cafe, I think. And I told you of my journey to deathlessness. And you stared at me, and called me insane.
Perhaps.
    Perhaps I was. But my insanity didn't stop me from begging you to reconsider. As the men in white carried me away.
    Locked me in a cell. Away from everyone. It's not healthy on a mind, this isolation. But had I stayed free, I'd still feel broken. Broken like my wrist under this slate from the ceiling. Like the chains of mortality I'd shattered long ago. I believe if any of you had survived, you'd beg my forgiveness in the knowledge I was right. But what comfort I would feel in that triumph has all but evaporated. What comfort would I gain from being right, when there's no one here to know it. I am truly.

Hopelessly.


Correct.

This bit of flash fiction can be found on my artist profile page at deviantART. Although when I wrote it the piece served as more of a brainstorm than anything else, I began to search for a subconscious message I might have placed in it. And, to my surprise, I found one.

In all honesty, I've only ever seen arguments end badly. There really isn't much of a way to settle it without a great deal of leftover bitterness. People are-- though they often try very hard to not be--inevitably uncivil. We all like to think we're right. We never are. NEVER.... (but) N E V E R !!!

Now, before the elitists try to jump on me for disrespecting their superior knowledge (give me a break) allow me to explain. Yes, it's true. We're never right; but not in the way to which you think I'm referring (please, put your egos back on their leashes.) No one is ever right, because while they may feel correct in an issue, someone else in the world will always disagree. And the concepts of right and wrong are mainly determined by people. So, if one person doesn't feel like you're right, then you aren't. Not to that person. Therefore, there is never a way to be one hundred percent correct.

Humanity sets its own standards. Don't believe me? Look at how the media has warped the minds of many of the world's youth; at least in the United States, women are expected to look like twigs and men are supposed to be Mr. Universe.

So, that's a standard. Albeit an unrealistic standard, but a standard set by members of the human race, nonetheless. And since it was created by members of humanity, it can be unmade in the same fashion. I don't agree with it. Therefore it is not correct.

Yet, still people push the image. They have to be right, right? Those big-wig directors and producers, who so obviously can tell you what's better for you than a certified physician or any other doctor. But they still have to be right.

And being "right" comes at a cost.

Look at many of the nation's youth, and even those beyond. People starve themselves and develop eating disorders. People have reconstructive surgeries. People commit suicide because they're bullied for their appearance.

A lot of this is either overlooked or seen but ignored by the people who so desperately wish to be right--an objective they'll never truly achieve.

This point can also be applied to the modern religious and nonreligious debate. I am a member of the Christian faith, but I never carry much of it into my artistic or literary works. It's something I only really speak about with other members. One of my largest beliefs is that anyone should be able to believe whatever they want. Thus, I've never pushed my religious views onto anyone. It is generally a person's right to reach their own conclusions, and in many ways, I believe in the faith for what would be considered the "wrong reasons" by many in both the religious and nonreligious sects. That's perfectly fine by me, because I know none of us are completely right.

But the struggle to be right causes many resentments on both sides of the spectrum. (Yes, they are BOTH guilty of being highly offensive and pushy to each other. All humans are hypocrites, as well. Shocker, right?)

Lawsuits fly all over the place, people pick fights purely to pick fights. And in that case, nobody wins, because both sides chase after something they can't achieve.

Though the phrase is quite cliche and really dated, it still applies:

Would you rather be right, or be happy?

Happiness is a state of mind, and can be acquired by almost anyone.

But being right is truly impossible.

Would you rather place a $1000 bet on a machine you've seen the last hundred casino patrons win, or the dark machine in the corner, which you know is rigged?

And that, my friends, is a decision I leave to you.

-Dakota