Is attention a want or a need ? maybe it is a want that comes to surface as a need. Philosophers have said that the best way of living is to not make an exhibition out of your life, but somewhere deep down we all want people to see, if not all but at least a portion, an aspect of our lives; we want privacy yet we need attention, no matter how much we want it the other way around.
What is attention in the first place ? what is its worth ? Why is attention one of the intangible property of ours that people crave for and why is it the other way round too ? the dictionary meaning of attention if one finds will be " the notice taken of someone or something, the regarding of someone or something as important or interesting" the synonyms being observation, notice, surveillance etc.. so basically as I have said, when it comes to people seeing or ignoring us, our lives seem to be an embodiment of bigotry, hypocrisy, dichotomy or whichever word that explains the dual nature.
We all want attention, we can't escape it, however whether we need it or not is clearly our choice. This desire for attention is a nature made law or a man made one is not clear yet, what is clear that it is an essential part of our lives, our jobs ask for attention, the people around us ask for our attention and from a relationship as well as a professional point of view we ask for attention from others, who are again trapped in the vicious circle of asking and giving attention. In this process of asking and paying attention we forget to ask the most important question to ourselves, " Is it worth it?" "Is it worth asking for attention from the person in front of me?" "Is is worth paying attention to the person asking for it?" Attention albeit intangible holds as much value as tangible money, you' cannot afford to waste nor can you beg for it at the cost of your self respect.
Yes, more than jobs and other priorities, my thought as per now lingers around the idea of exchange of attention between two people. The reason ? in today's world of hectic work and the rat-race of getting somewhere in the nick of time and then setting foot for another race to get somewhere else, we have no time to interact with our self let alone the people around us. We forget to ask the question of the worth of the other person's attention,we get it, without questioning it or ourselves as to how we got it at the cost of something which could be as valuable as our self-respect and even worse, we are happy with it. The reason being our loneliness, and when we are all alone and all of a sudden we get attention from a few people, we might not know how to handle it, we are overwhelmed by it, either we are too scared to react and we cower down or we feel too happy and expect more which might be lethal as the other person may end up calling you an "ATTENTION-SEEKER" or in today's time the label is "ATTENTION-SEEKING WHORE".
If asked me instead of whore the term "DOG" would sound more decent, at least compared to whore, dog makes more sense, reason being that running after attention is like a dog running after cars, in the end the question remains the same "What are you going to do with it ?" Believe me, it's not worth it, especially when the other person makes you run after them, makes you beg for their time and ears, especially when he/she doesn't listen but just hear to what you have to say and keep you on the hook when it comes to giving attention because honestly, you don't matter to them anymore.
While we are discussing about the worth of other people's attention and their need for attention, it is time we check ourselves too, one question that's hovering in my mind right now is that in the need of attention from others, mostly the outsiders who aren't even worth to be in the inner-circle of my loved ones but we chose to place them there, have we taken for granted the attention of the ones who really value us ? the ones who did let go of us to crave attention from the ones we wanted to but deep inside were yearning for us? sadly most of the times i get the answer in affirmative. Maybe this post will be a way for me to apologize to those loved ones of mine and a promise to give them my complete attention and rightfully ask for mine; It is also a thank you to those people worthless of our attention and whose attention held no value in reality, a thank you, for ignoring me so that i could find the worthy people in my life.
In terms of attention, we humans alas are like the dog who grasps for another bone but in reality it's just an illusion for our bones re more valuable than the ones that seem luring and tempting. So the other question that comes across my mind as I attempt to conclude, am I an "ATTENTION-SEEKER" ?
Yes, I am, I am an "ATTENTION SEEKER", for I seek the attention of the ones who love me and value me and also the ones who seem to value me for now, are they worth it or not ? time will tell, but more than attention their mere presence and the warmth that they radiate which assures me that I am not lonely in the crowd, I am not unloved, I have a value and special place in their heart, that the bond they share with me is worth all the trials and tests of time. The feeling one can get is yes, they are worth it to see a certain aspect of my life if not the entire life. If this is all i crave for, and this is all I ask for and this is all I wish to give to someone who values me as much as I do, I like most humans am seeking for AFFECTION, not ATTENTION, sadly other humans don't know it yet. I, on the other hand can unabashedly say to my loved ones that I want your attention, I need your attention and I have a right on your attention too in certain way, for I , I am not an ATTENTION-SEEKER, I am an AFFECTION-SEEKER, and I am not ashamed of it because this is a need of other humans around us too. If they are worth it and see you worthy too, give them and don't hesitate before asking from them.
What is attention in the first place ? what is its worth ? Why is attention one of the intangible property of ours that people crave for and why is it the other way round too ? the dictionary meaning of attention if one finds will be " the notice taken of someone or something, the regarding of someone or something as important or interesting" the synonyms being observation, notice, surveillance etc.. so basically as I have said, when it comes to people seeing or ignoring us, our lives seem to be an embodiment of bigotry, hypocrisy, dichotomy or whichever word that explains the dual nature.
We all want attention, we can't escape it, however whether we need it or not is clearly our choice. This desire for attention is a nature made law or a man made one is not clear yet, what is clear that it is an essential part of our lives, our jobs ask for attention, the people around us ask for our attention and from a relationship as well as a professional point of view we ask for attention from others, who are again trapped in the vicious circle of asking and giving attention. In this process of asking and paying attention we forget to ask the most important question to ourselves, " Is it worth it?" "Is it worth asking for attention from the person in front of me?" "Is is worth paying attention to the person asking for it?" Attention albeit intangible holds as much value as tangible money, you' cannot afford to waste nor can you beg for it at the cost of your self respect.
Yes, more than jobs and other priorities, my thought as per now lingers around the idea of exchange of attention between two people. The reason ? in today's world of hectic work and the rat-race of getting somewhere in the nick of time and then setting foot for another race to get somewhere else, we have no time to interact with our self let alone the people around us. We forget to ask the question of the worth of the other person's attention,we get it, without questioning it or ourselves as to how we got it at the cost of something which could be as valuable as our self-respect and even worse, we are happy with it. The reason being our loneliness, and when we are all alone and all of a sudden we get attention from a few people, we might not know how to handle it, we are overwhelmed by it, either we are too scared to react and we cower down or we feel too happy and expect more which might be lethal as the other person may end up calling you an "ATTENTION-SEEKER" or in today's time the label is "ATTENTION-SEEKING WHORE".
If asked me instead of whore the term "DOG" would sound more decent, at least compared to whore, dog makes more sense, reason being that running after attention is like a dog running after cars, in the end the question remains the same "What are you going to do with it ?" Believe me, it's not worth it, especially when the other person makes you run after them, makes you beg for their time and ears, especially when he/she doesn't listen but just hear to what you have to say and keep you on the hook when it comes to giving attention because honestly, you don't matter to them anymore.
While we are discussing about the worth of other people's attention and their need for attention, it is time we check ourselves too, one question that's hovering in my mind right now is that in the need of attention from others, mostly the outsiders who aren't even worth to be in the inner-circle of my loved ones but we chose to place them there, have we taken for granted the attention of the ones who really value us ? the ones who did let go of us to crave attention from the ones we wanted to but deep inside were yearning for us? sadly most of the times i get the answer in affirmative. Maybe this post will be a way for me to apologize to those loved ones of mine and a promise to give them my complete attention and rightfully ask for mine; It is also a thank you to those people worthless of our attention and whose attention held no value in reality, a thank you, for ignoring me so that i could find the worthy people in my life.
In terms of attention, we humans alas are like the dog who grasps for another bone but in reality it's just an illusion for our bones re more valuable than the ones that seem luring and tempting. So the other question that comes across my mind as I attempt to conclude, am I an "ATTENTION-SEEKER" ?
Yes, I am, I am an "ATTENTION SEEKER", for I seek the attention of the ones who love me and value me and also the ones who seem to value me for now, are they worth it or not ? time will tell, but more than attention their mere presence and the warmth that they radiate which assures me that I am not lonely in the crowd, I am not unloved, I have a value and special place in their heart, that the bond they share with me is worth all the trials and tests of time. The feeling one can get is yes, they are worth it to see a certain aspect of my life if not the entire life. If this is all i crave for, and this is all I ask for and this is all I wish to give to someone who values me as much as I do, I like most humans am seeking for AFFECTION, not ATTENTION, sadly other humans don't know it yet. I, on the other hand can unabashedly say to my loved ones that I want your attention, I need your attention and I have a right on your attention too in certain way, for I , I am not an ATTENTION-SEEKER, I am an AFFECTION-SEEKER, and I am not ashamed of it because this is a need of other humans around us too. If they are worth it and see you worthy too, give them and don't hesitate before asking from them.
