Mindfulness

In a society where media is so prevalent it's important to take time out of the day to reflect. That is what a part of mindfulness is. In "Me, Myself and I" Uwe Herwig states that "when people are in touch with their feelings, they are better able to manage everyday stresses." This is a great benefit in being more mindful and aware of your emotions. In society mindfulness is encouraged. We're always told to "find yourself" and "follow your dreams" which requires some soul searching and reflection. But society discourages mindfulness as well with all the media. The media is such a huge presence that we don't have enough time in the day after we catch up on all the celebrity gossip, new, and our favorite shows. Our free time is spent in front of some sort of screen, be it TV, computer, cell phone, or something else. Nobody ever takes thirty minutes out of their day to just sit back and think. I think that mindfulness needs to become a bigger part of peoples lives. If we're in tune with our emotions our lives overall will be calmer and more pleasant. 

What Is A Postmodern World?

This postmodern world we live in is ever-changing. It's driven by the idea that truth is objective and it simply depends on how you view this situation at this moment in time. And even opinions are subject to change. Nothing is written in stone. All truths are not the same for every person, statistics and evidence can be tailored to fit the desired outcome. As long as somebody has the smallest shred of evidence to backup their claim. Postmodernism is a cultural shift. We are more mobile now than we were in the modern era, and so is our information. According to Walter Truett Anderson's From Modern Self to Postmodern Selves postmodernism shows a mobility of people and symbols as well as cultural pluralism and change. People are moving around now more than ever. They're following their hopes and dreams. They don't feel as tied down to their homes as they used to. Symbols are mobile now as well. With the boom in social networking information is becoming more and more accessible. Anderson states that, "words and visual images are the raw material out of which realities are made." Those raw materials are readily available to anybody with access to the internet. Media can be broadcasted like never before. With the click of a button the population has access to a wealth of information. This is the postmodern world. Freedom, options, understanding. We understand other cultures in so much depth in this new age. With the ability to travel around the world or even to skype with somebody from another country we gain worldly knowledge, maybe without leaving the confines of our own living room. This new world opens so many doors for people. It allows an exchange of knowledge and culture that we've never had before. 

     In this postmodern world one can become anything they want to be. It is easy to change your persona from one day to the next. Much like Clark Kent shedding his suit and tie to don tights and a cape, we can change our identities at anytime we please. Andrea Jones brings up the fact that "skin differentiates but does not isolate. Your singular existence unfolds within it, but skin does not hold the universe at bay." This just shows that skin is the glue that holds the pieces together, it's not what makes up who you are. Who you are is determined by what your beliefs are and what sort of a person you want to be. You can't change what you are on the outside. All you can control is what's inside. In this postmodern world we aren't confined to the traditional roles of society and therefore we can be whatever we want to be. Women are aloud to like working with their hands, men can discuss feelings, whatever we want. This is a major part of what makes up the postmodern world.