While I don’t consider myself a narcissist, I have been told many times that the world doesn’t revolve around me. I find that I become so focused on my own life (my struggles, wins, stressors and enjoyments) that the people around me feel less noticed or cared about.
I care about my loved ones so deeply that I would never want them to consider me selfish and less supportive of them. But, the world does kind of revolve around me, and it revolves around you, too. Despite the fact that Earth physically revolves around the Sun and is genuinely incapable of circling a single person on the planet, you are incapable of living the life of another.
Contrary to the plot of the hit movie “Freaky Friday,” you are unable to think, feel or be anyone but yourself. You may feel empathetic or relate to others, but you will never wake up in a different body or share emotions. So, technically speaking, the world does revolve around us individually.
As I am presently a student at Penn State, there are so many people on this planet I will never cross paths with. I’m living in my own bubble, only considering who I have previously met and how my life is currently going.
In the same sense, a student at the University of Cape Town in South Africa has no connection to me and therefore does not care about me, focusing on their own life. This doesn’t make them egotistical or a bad person. It’s human nature to care about what is available and tangible to you in the present moment.
In doing homework all day, I’ve thought little about my friends from summer camp in 4th grade. They once were extremely relevant to me, consuming a portion of my mind. Since then, I’ve had no real correlation or parallel to their lives, consequently, not considering them while making decisions on a daily basis. In the same way, they might not even remember my name, living their own day-to-day without acknowledging my presence.
Think about the amount of beings who have exited and entered your life, whether they made an impact on you or not. Why would you think about them if they aren’t in your physical presence or important in this chapter? It’s not being self-absorbed or vain. The way you think and act comes from your brain and is seen through your eyes. There is no way to morph two brains.
When my Grandma got sick, my Grandpa focused everything on ensuring she was safe and healthy. He prioritized her needs over his own. In an attempt to avoid this sounding selfish, there’s no way he didn’t think about how this would affect him and his life. You can cherish and support another person, but that’s not going to stop your life from moving on.
Your world absolutely revolves around you and my world revolves around me, although not in a physical sense. It’s important to put yourself before others, but it’s also instinctual to think about the impact on your life through your eyes.