Twice in the last few weeks that I can recall my darling wife and I have been called "Genuine people." This is a complement, and we were grateful for it at the time, although as with many ordinary phrases I found myself baffled by it. What is a genuine person? Surely everyone is a genuine person, an actual real-life human being? There must be some deeper meaning to this.
I suppose the opposite of a genuine person is a faker, someone who pretends to be someone they are not. So perhaps a genuine person is someone who simply does not try to be someone, but simply is someone. But how could you tell? How can you tell that the actions of a person are genuinely themselves or an attempt to be someone else? Perhaps the genuine nature of someone is that they try to appear in the best light? Are not those people who spend large amounts of time and effort on their appearance, who try to say only the most impressive things, who are excited by connection to fame and celebrity genuinely interested in looking good, being cool and famous?
Perhaps what constitutes a genuine person is someone who simply does not change very much from situation to situation? I think that might well be true of myself, and although it is well documented that I am moody that seems to be internal rather than externally driven. I do not try very hard to be someone different in different situations, but I fail to see how that benefits myself very much. Some adaptability might well be advantageous for me, but I can see how that is helpful for others.
So, the compliment of being a genuine person might well simply come down to that the other person is pleased that you are extremely predictable.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
2 comments:
I think a genuine person is someone who is sincere, humble, and honest.
People who lie in order to promote themselves or, as you say, to make themselves seem other than what they believe they are... those are not genuine people.
I also think you were correct to accept the description of being genuine as a compliment. I happen to believe that about you both, too.
Mensch is a good German word Yiddish speakers use to describe the "genuine" person of today. It was in common American English use not that long ago. It wraps integrity, generosity, and sincerity into humane behavior. I believe as synonyms mensch and "genuine" are fairly applied to Dan and Christina.
Having just finished reading Randy Pausch's (and Jeff Zaslow's) short book The Last Lecture and re-watching the video of the same title (http://www.cmu.edu/uls/journeys/randy-pausch/index.html), I am struck with the importance this ultra logical (mostly left-brained) thinker attaches to the qualities of integrity, generosity, and sincerity.
Post a Comment