"L'enfer, c'est les autres."
(Hell is other people)
- Jean-Paul Sartre
Vergine è stanchissima (Virgo is tired as hell)
I often joke that I'm the stereotypical Virgo - hypercritical (mostly of myself), slapping people verbally, and acts of service being my love language. However, my nervous system, as of late, has been on overdrive for multiple reasons.
Without getting into a litany of specifics, let's just say it's been easy to see how Florence inspired Dante to create his concept of "Inferno." However, it has also been a useful device for mentally dividing the city up according to where Inferno, Purgatorio, and Paradiso exist - and it really is a matter of people.
It's not that I'm a misanthrope (although I would argue humanity as a whole is a habitual line-crosser), but the more I observe and interact with others, the more I'm convinced of Sartre's famous phrase "L'enfer, c'est les autres." It's easy to feel like we are surrounded by people who lack empathy or are narrow-minded - whether they're colleagues at work, acquaintances on social media, or even family members.
Our experiences in life shape us, and some days it can seem like an inferno is burning inside everyone. What do we do when this is the case? Do we resist and try to fight these feelings? Or do we accept them as part of our reality and learn to live with it? Instead of focusing on the existing Inferno, we can intentionally build toward Paradiso - and even find points of Purgatorio that don't seem nearly as terrible.
True to Virgo form, I am definitely keeping a list.
