Self-Presentation Could Stand Improvement

I remember an old Twilight Zone episode titled A Piano in the House. In it, a cruel, malevolent man buys a player piano for his wife’s birthday. He soon discovers that playing it forces different people to openly reveal their concealed feelings. This man’s butler is a continually scowling, most unhappy-looking sort. But upon hearing the piano, he instantly begins to joyfully laugh, dance, and proclaim how much fun he has being this jerk’s butler! And when the piano piece ends, the butler immediately reverts back to his old unpleasant demeanor.

I don’t exactly project a positive, ebullient image of myself in public. Even when I am feeling all right, even happy, others tend to come away with the idea that I am miserable. I think a lot of it has to do with the natural expression I have plastered over my face. Coupled with the fact that I am usually a very quiet person, sometimes I believe others think that I am undergoing extreme depression.

In truth, I think that I am like others in that my life is a mixture of both the positive and negative, with things pretty much balancing themselves out over the long run. This doesn’t mean that my life is stagnant or “not” happy; those who insist on keeping up ecstatic feelings as a measurement of their joi de vivre, are also those, in my opinion, more likely to stumble in the areas of drugs, violence, and crime in general. They also tend to creep me out when I'm around them!

It’s normal to be sad, afraid, or angry sometimes. I just need to figure out a way to avoid wearing it on my face all the time! And a little positive initiative on my part in stimulating conversation with others can go a long way in revealing my emotional state as “normal”, not “depressed”. As a matter of fact, I have a few ideas that I’ve used on this blog that just might be good conversation starters. On the other hand, even if I just stood on my head spouting gibberish, that would probably improve my image to others as well!