[Life Confessions No. 2] - I KNOW what you feel but I CANNOT UNDERSTAND

in #life7 years ago (edited)

Many of us are guilty of saying that knowledge and understanding is the same.

  • If you say, "I know what you feel..." it means that you have the knowledge of WHAT it is.

You simply know what the feeling is but you cannot fully understand because you are not experiencing it or you have not been in the same situation.

  • Saying, "I understand how you feel..." is different.

Understanding brings emphatic emotion. You become sympathetic with the person. You FEEL or HAVE FELT HOW the other person is feeling. You have been in the same situation, per se.

Okay, enough with definitions. What I am really trying to share is my stand on the movie:
ME BEFORE YOU
mebeforeyou.jpg

Photo Source: http://mebeforeyoumovie.com/

For those who have not watched it, I suggest you do. (So, not only for you to understand what I mean in this entry but also you’ll get to see life in other people’s perspective.)

Yesterday, I have watched it for the second time and my eyes got swollen again. I can say that I have shed tears twice the amount than the first time. I won't deny the fact that I can be easily persuaded with good music and sad love stories.

"You only get one life. It's actually your duty to live it as fully as possible."

That line, coming from the man who wants to end his life, is the best irony of all time. I cannot reconcile the fact that he knows he can still have a good life with her and still wants to die. Just because he can’t accept what was already lost in his life doesn't mean he would be better off dead.

The man in the movie is paralyzed from his neck down to his feet after being in an accident that damaged his spinal cord. He used to be outgoing but after the mishap, he declines to accept his life with disability that requires dependency from others. Everyday, he also experiences a lot of pain and suffering and without any hope of recovery. Thus, wanting to end his life with euthanasia. While the lady wants to change his mind and promised that she can make him happy, the man wants her to live her life fully instead of "half a life" with him.

That situation is my perfect example for this sentence:
I know what you feel but I cannot understand.

I know that he is suffering. I know that he is desperate about not being able to go back to his old routine. I know that he knows that a lot of people love him and someone accepts him fully. But, I STILL CANNOT UNDERSTAND why he chose to die.

To be clear, I DO NOT JUDGE and I know that I HAVE NO RIGHT TO JUDGE people who commit suicide (whether assisted or not). I'm just saying, I cannot understand because knowledge of what they feel is different from understanding how they feel.

My modest confession:

I am grateful for sappy movies because it allows me to see different perspective of people and the kind of life that others have. If you feel hopeless or depressed, think of at least one thing in your life, even if it is just a small one, that makes life worth living.

It made me realize that no matter how hard life is for someone, there will always be that one thing to be thankful for—that one thing to make you feel how blessed you are.

(Oh, such movies also allow me to clean my eyes through crying. Haha!)

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One thing i do when watching movies thu..or on anyone for that matter is try to understand the whysss. For some people, this is very important but this depends on how much interest one have in finding out the answers. Or make assumptions.

Hi! Yes, I agree with you in finding the Why's in every situation. In the movie, the man's "why" is that he lost the sense of living and he wanted to end the pain. What I cannot understand is HOW he truly feels because I was never in the situation he is in.

I love it when people converse with me and share their thoughts, thank you so much!

We can only assume I guess. People,patients who are constantly in pain chose death than being alive. Some families would chose that as well to end their suffering..althu his mom was in cahoots with the girl. this i can understand, althu there are times when i hate seeing someone suffer, accepting when death comes knocking.
Now this guy, who had live life to the full, in pain every second. Perhaps he longed for death every second that he's awake too. What is there to live for? I may not understand the way he felt for not experiencing his situation, but having asked the same question, I understood then why people have jumped over bridges and buildings..when all hope is gone, there's no more reason to live. That man wakes up each day for the same pain and torture as yesterday. If I were him, i will hope to not wake up in the morning.

For those who are suicidal, we can try to watch and control our thoughts for our actions follow it. Holding on to God and having the strength to follow His will keep us sane and endure the pain and overcome.

I totally agree. We need something to hold on to and that's God's mercy and help, to have strength and to keep fighting. :)

People losing hope, they feel lost. To have strength to go on, it's difficult. But our thoughts are powerful, they can lead us anywhere.
So ate/lola...write ka pa more. I love them.

I guess that's the main reason why I cry hard while watching it. My heart goes out to those who feel hopeless.

Thanks so much for the appreciation. I'll be posting a happier article next time.

No don't. A lot of people already write happy ones. Sadness, hopelessness are realities of life. We need exposure so that it can strengthen us when it happens, if it happen.
We can do something for those hopeless. I will recruit you one day.

Thanks for sharing @ryssa

Thank you so much for the appreciation

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