There is exceptional value in understanding that most people don’t give a shit about you, and this is not a bad thing. Do you remember that one guy from high school? You guys had drama together and he always volunteered to do the improv warm up. Like literally every single time. He wasn’t even good at it, but he did it, and for that you admired him. You remember that guy? Well he probably doesn’t give a shit about you. Nor do you give a shit about him. That's because there are very limited things you can give a shit about at one time. We live in an era with unprecedented access to information, an ever growing pool of data, videos and listicles all vying for our attention. In this sense were lucky, we get to choose what we give a shit about, yet I choose to care about some dumb shit. Some things we choose to care about, however, are thrust upon us. I would love to not care about global warming or our ever shrinking freedoms and liberties on a global scale, yet here we are. What stories do is highlight what we care about and allow us to find a reason. Recently, nature documentaries have shifted their tone. Stories that used to focus on the beauty of nature and wildlife now tend to focus on how this beauty is not sustainable; we are actively working against what we claim to love. These can become almost difficult to watch, it is depressing to consider what is happening around us at our own hands. What is even more depressing, however, is not knowing, because without knowledge we would be blind to this evil. Stories give us evidence, something we can point to and say “this is real, and here's the proof”.
Something I struggle with is finding the universal truths within my own problems and insecurities. I tend to feel alone, as if no one has experienced life through a lens similar to mine. I think this is why, from a young age, I loved movies and television. They have the innate ability to answer the question I never had the courage to ask: Is it ok to feel like this?” Stories have the power to make us feel human. They let us know that it's ok to be angry, its ok to be sad, and it's ok to find the humor in dark times. This is why I think I’m drawn to storytelling, it connects us all through a universal narrative. It makes it harder to not care about something or to dismiss it because when it becomes a story it becomes more personal, more intimate and more real. There is power in that.