My father's older sister — who also helped raise me, to a large extent — was 14 years his senior and had lived through both the Great Depression and the German occupation of Denmark during world War II.
This gave her some interesting insights and perspectives many people simply would not have.
This morning, I found myself thinking about a conversation we had when I was maybe 30, and we were talking about "difficult times," in a general sort of sense.
One of the things she described was how a lot of people — by about late 1944 — weren't exactly depressed, but they did experience a sort of background "tiredness," caused mostly by the reality that no matter what you might want to do there was always this extra layer of effort needed... which made people typically think twice before doing anything.
Many things were rationed and there was always the risk (during WWII) of being stopped by a German patrol and having to go through the hassles of providing papers and having to explain why you were out and where you were going.
As I thought about this (I was looking at old photos) it suddenly sounded alarmingly familiar and not unlike the answer I felt inclined to give a visiting friend today in response to her asking "how I was doing."
As a student of human nature I tend to be more concerned with people's behavior than with the bare bones of some potentially real or manufactured illness.
I've noticed that fairly large number of people I know are not exactly depressed but they are not exactly doing well, either. And that holds somewhat true for myself, as well.
I'm not big on "social things" to begin with, but things like occasionally eating out increasingly feels like it's just too much hassle, so we pretty much don't. And we don't really get takeout that often, either... by the time you get it home it's less than exciting, in most cases.
I'd say that most people are pretty good at overcoming difficulties in their lives; the real issue arises when those difficulties start to take on a prolonged nature, and there's really no clear end in sight. It's a little easier to deal with something inconvenient and annoying for a couple of years if you actually know it's going to end, at some specified time.
I wonder, sometimes, whether this "background tiredness" is actually the inadvertent result of people worrying more... which does take its toll, over time. That idea is supported a little by a recent study showing that people's blood pressure — on average, in the USA — has gone up in 2020 and 2021.
Beats me. All I know is that sometimes I just feel more tired than I'd like to.
Thanks for reading, and have a great remainder of your week!
How about YOU? Have you felt more weary or tired, over the last year? Does it seem like most things are "more work" to do, even if doing them is permitted? Comments, feedback and other interaction is invited and welcomed! Because — after all — SOCIAL content is about interacting, right? Leave a comment — share your experiences — be part of the conversation!
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Created at 20211207 18:54 PST
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