I just wanted to get this off my chest. My parents pretty much ignore me all the time, even more so when I talk. They believe they're so high and mighty and that they don't need to listen to anyone else besides the twisted thoughts in their head. After dealing with it for fifteen years, I'm starting to get annoyed. A couple years back, I saw a bird sitting on top of my mother's Dodge Neon. I was sitting on the bench by the car, but my mother was standing on the porch, smoking a cigarette. I'm like, "Hey mom, look at that bird." Her response? It wasn't anything relating to the bird: "I'm not giving you the birds and bees talk. They give it to you in school." "Mom, I don't care about the birds and bees talk. I'm talking about the bird sitting on your car." "We already went through this a hundred times. If you have any questions on the birds and bees, you have to ask your health teacher." My mother doesn't listen, at all. I swear, she has selective hearing. She'll pick out a word in my sentence and just start rambling on about stuff not even relating to my sentence. It just gives me the vibe that she isn't listening to me. It ticks me off. I'm ignored by almost everyone. At school, I'm ignored because I wear tie-dye shirts, so everyone thinks I'm odd. I really don't care about their opinions about me. But everyone is so darn close-minded around here that they aren't willing to accept anything different. I'll be laughing when my classmates go to college and meet a person with entirely different beliefs than them. Just because you don't agree with a person's beliefs doesn't mean you don't have to listen to them. I listen to other people's opinions all the time, and though I sometimes disagree, I still listen anyway. You can learn a lot from listening. My boyfriend is the only person that doesn't ignore me. At first, I liked him just because he actually acknowledged I existed. He probably felt the same about me because he was an outcast, just because he wore black clothing. Then, when we started dating, I was reminded that just because a person looks different doesn't mean they're a demon. And yes, we did blow everyone's minds when the "hippie and emo kid" starting dating. I couldn't care less about stereotypes. I'm me. My boyfriend is himself. It's nice to date someone that doesn't put up a facade to hide their personality. I'm so glad I finally got this off my chest...it's been deeply annoying me for a while.
To address your comments in order: You mother sounds like she is preoccupied with other things. Now, I don't know her or you - but she may hear buzzwords in a conversation and is trying to anticipate what is coming next. Obviously she assumes wrong, and parents do do that (surprise! ), but what can you do? I say just laugh it off and write about it in a journal. You never know when these moments might come in handy for a creative writing project for school, a poem, a short story, or a book. Or you may never do anything with it, but just look back and laugh at the whole situation when you are older. As to school and people ignoring you and you not caring - all of that isn't true. If you didn't care about what people thought, you wouldn't be writing about it here...it would be water off a ducks back; a non-issue. This isn't a criticism, its just a fact of life. When I was your age; I cared about what everyone thought of me - even though I was dressing up in tie-dye and homemade bell-bottoms. People ignored me, but then I found out who my true friends were, the ones that stuck by me regardless. --->Want to have fun? Dress up like a preppy/cool person for a couple of days and see how differently people treat you. I always loved doing that - boys would pay attention to me. Want to know something? Getting that attention wasn't enough to keep me dressing like that. I went back to my old dressing habits and they went back to ignoring me.<--- I tell you this because you will come to a certain point in your life that you realize that "being a hippie" isn't about dressing the stereotype. It's about doing what you want, wearing what you want and being who you want. I have to dress in business-casual for my current job. Does that make me any less of a hippie? Does that make me a tool in the machine? The answer is 'no' to both of these questions. I am still myself when I wear my mala beads and put a flower in my hair on my way into work. When I have a day off that I break out the so-called "hippie wear"; I'll bum around the house with a pair of "peace, love, and happiness" PJ bottoms (seriously, I do) and funky shirt I have collected over the years. I have just learned that there are other ways to express myself and not have a neon green HIPPIE sign blinking from my forehead 24 hours-a-day. Ultimately it comes down to this: being a hippie isn't a fashion statement, it's a lifestyle/mindset. You have heard this song and dance before, no doubt, but here it is again (because it's true!): A hippie is a free-flowing person who doesn't allow themselves to be trapped into one particular mindset for a long period of time. They are open-minded and receptive to all people in all walks of life. They work for an understanding between cultures to help cultivate peace. They don't allow themselves to be bogged down by what they can't do - but what they can do to make a difference. You are right about the listening thing. That is something you need to continue to do. Listen to people, be open and accepting to them - where they weren't of you. You may find that people will turn to you because you are trustworthy (just don't let people step all over you in the process). Who knows what will happen with that? I hope that helped with the school bit. I know it seems like a derailment from the people ignoring you at school - but it is my way of saying: in the long run it doesn't even matter. You'll come into your own style and beliefs and you won't even care what they think once they are in college. I don't have contact with anyone I went to middle school/high school with. Though I plan to attend my 10 year or 15 year High School reunion. I'll let you know how that goes in a few years. Also, don't worry. We won't ignore you here. If you ever need someone to talk to - feel free to PM me. Good luck. ~ SPeace
So, tell me about the bird. I actually enjoy watching them. I saw one the other day that I think was drunk!
Children being by loving their parents; as they grow older they judge them; sometimes they forgive them.~Oscar Wilde from The Picture Of Dorian Grey Most parents are ass holes, that's just the way it is. But I don't know how I could live with people calling me a hippie. Such a vile misconception.
