Befuddlement or a Hard Truth?

Posted on February 12, 2005 in Disappointment Gender

I don’t know for certain that this is true, but in my observations of the world, it seems that women and men are more willing to help women in trouble than they are to help men. I’ve gathered this from my own life and the lives of others I have known. For example, as health problems mounted in my life, Lynn’s Quaker Meeting appointed a committee to help her cope with all the problems stemming from my illnesses.

Not so long ago, in another Quaker Meeting, someone urged that they give proper support to a member working on a project in former Yugoslavia. “We shouldn’t let her down like we let Joel down.” This word came indirectly to me through a friend. And Joel, well, Joel is still alone in his affairs.

The message I receive from this is “You just go to the doctor and take your pills. We’ll make sure that Lynn isn’t alone.”

I do want to thank those few who have been there recently when I called them. Still, it’s a circle that I built. I don’t see too many people rushing to help me as volunteers.

What’s nice is when people call me out of the blue just to see how I am. That doesn’t happen much.

Here’s another issue for me: I strive to be a good and fair person. Sometimes I run into people who think I am elitist for being so. It’s like they say that I shouldn’t be a good and fair person. This distresses me. The world sets a value and then criticizes those who attempt to achieve it. Can anyone wonder why I am resolving more and more to trust in myself and not in others?