Am I Normal?

Buddhist Boot Camp Podcast

Timber Hawkeye

Spirituality, Buddhism, Awareness, Calm, Society & Culture, Meditation, Mindful, Buddhist, Philosophy, Awake, Minimalist, Innerpeace, Selfhelp, Spiritual, Education, Aware, Mindfulness, Self-improvement

4.8 • 907 Ratings

🗓️ 23 May 2021

⏱️ 9 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

What does "Normal" even mean? To what lengths are we willing go to fit in? From a very young age, I was told something was wrong with me simply because I was different. Would you pretend to be someone you're not in order to be liked and admired, celebrated or accepted? Would you commit a crime? Do drugs? Work 80 hours a week? Wear certain clothes to fit-in? Have kids? Sign a 30-year loan? Would you do what feels unnatural to you simply because it's expected of you? To what end? As Ani DiFranco said, "I was four years old when they showed me a picture of three oranges and a pear. They asked me which one was different and does not belong? They taught me that different was wrong." This short podcast episode is a glimpse into my own journey to where I am today.

Transcript

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0:17.0	Welcome to the Buddhist Boot Camp Podcast. Our intention is to awaken, enlighten, enrich, and inspire a simple and uncomplicated life. Discover the benefits of mindful living with your host, Timber Hawkeye.
0:31.0	When you look up the dictionary's definition of the word normal, it doesn't describe what normal is. It says normal means
0:34.5	conforming to what is typical, usual, or expected. By definition therefore,
0:40.4	nothing and nobody is inherently normal.
0:43.8	Some people just choose to conform to social standards.
0:47.2	I'm honestly relieved and wish I had looked up the definition when I was younger
0:51.7	because I thought normal was how we all start out but some people just missed the mark and by some people I mean me
0:59.0	From a very young age I was told something was wrong with me because all I wanted to do was stay in my room, read or draw in silent solitude, spend hours building model airplanes out of tiny parts, and learning computer programming code when computers were first introduced.
1:16.6	But my parents literally and physically forced me out of the house because they wanted me to play with the other children living in our street like a quote unquote normal kid.
1:26.5	I remember my dad arriving home from work one evening and finding me sitting outside on the steps. What are you doing here?
1:33.7	he asked.
1:34.7	Mom locked me out of the house again, I said.
1:37.4	I get that my parents just wanted what they thought would be best for me,
1:41.5	mainly a life with less ridicule from others and more fitting in.
1:46.1	They had no idea what to do with a little boy who was totally unlike his older sister,
1:51.4	who was a social butterfly and always out with her friends.
1:54.8	I wasn't into any of the typical stuff that a parent would expect from a young boy.
2:00.2	I was quiet, didn't like getting dirty, was extremely sensitive to noise, preferred being alone,
2:06.4	needed things to be very orderly to remain calm, and I couldn't relate to the other kids in school.
2:12.4	I was different. I wasn't bad, just different. Any violent
2:16.9	outburst were the result of being forced to do what was so unnatural for me. But I don't blame young me anymore for being so angry.
2:25.9	It's okay, little buddy. You were uncomfortable and didn't have the words with which to explain
	...

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