Other People Have Interests, Too.

You have people in your life. Family members, friends, coworkers, neighbors. You also probably don't realize you're taking advantage of them. It's easy for us to take those in our lives for granted and not recognize them for all they are. I think we tend to cram people into typecast people into roles based on their relationship to ourselves. We frame them within the context of our own narratives. The thing is, your boss goes home at night and has a life wholly separate from your own. Your friends have interests you probably have no idea about (not just ones secured by incognito windows). You've probably felt underappreciated in some of your own endeavors. The point here is that people are infinitely more complex and interesting than we tend to give them credit for.

I live with four other people (and three cats). One roommate posted on Facebook a few months back that tickets were available for a musical they were going to be performing in. Wut. I had no idea about this at all. I was sleeping under the same roof as this person and had no idea that every night they were going out to rehearse for this performance. So, I go to see it and the show is incredible. It was huge, long, and complex full of singing, speaking, dancing, and all kinds of other things that would take ten lifetimes to get down right. My roommate played a huge role in the production and I felt like the biggest loser for not knowing anything about this. Just recently, one of my favorite coworkers sent out an email that he, too, was in a musical. This is a monotonous guy who has a very dry sense of humor. Of course, I go to his performance, and it's the coolest thing. He's onstage, singing and doing cartwheels, dancing with a rose between his teeth, and beaming the entire time. How was I so close to these people and fail to recognize their talents? Am I just an idiot? (Most likely.) Or do we live in a collective obliviousness to those around us?  

The moral of this nonstory is to take an interest in those around you, pay attention to who they are, and support them when you have the chance. I think anybody reading this page knows how isolating it is to have an unrecognized hobby. We've all been locked in a room alone with a word processor. Whether it's a book, an album, or a petting zoo in my basement made out of stuffed roadkill, it's worthwhile to take an interest in the interests of your peers. Not only does it encourage them but it enriches your relationship with those around you.