How to Love the World As It Is？ It struck me recently that a lot of people think they know

How to Love the World As It Is？

It struck me recently that a lot of people think they know what's wrong with this world, and it also struck me that they're all wrong.

Seriously-almost every political and religious group, every opinionated person, every publication with an opinion, has said at one time or another what they think is wrong with this world.

So what's really wrong with the world, in my opinion？

Not a thing.

The Prevailing World-view

It seems to be a prevailing world-view that the world is messed up, that there are just a few things wrong with it, and if we could only get those things to change, the world would be great. If we could just educate people and get them to realize what's wrong with this world, things could change.

This type of view of the world-and like I said, I think it's the prevailing view-stems from an ideal that many people have in their heads of what the world should be like. They might not realize they have that ideal, but it's there. And the world will never reach this Platonic ideal, because it's just this image of perfection that does not match reality. Reality and this ideal are incompatible.

So What's Wrong with That？

Nothing's wrong with that, actually. That's how most people are, and I don't think I can change that, nor would I want to. I thought it would be an interesting discussion, though, because I think this discrepancy between what people think the world should be and what the world really is can cause unhappiness.

If you want the world to be completely vegetarian and kind to animals, and it isn't and won't be in the foreseeable future, you will most likely be unhappy. If you want the world to go back to how it was during your childhood, or during your parents' generation, and it isn't likely to do so, you're not going to be happy.

The same is true of any of our ideals. It's very possible that the reality of the people in your life don't meet these ideals. That might cause you to be unhappy with them.

When reality doesn't meet ideals-and it rarely does-we become unhappy.

So What's the Alternative？

I'm not proposing that you, or anyone else, change your world-view. If you, or anyone else, are happy with that world-view, don't change it.

But there is an alternative, and I'm not saying it's better. It's the world-view I try to have: instead of having an ideal, stop looking for perfection. Accept the world as it is, and love it for what it is. Accept people as they are, and love them.

What would be the result of this alternative world-view？ Well, I think you'd be happier, if only because you didn't see the world as a fundamentally flawed or evil place, and began to see the good in the world. This, however, is open to individual interpretation, and your own experience is likely to be different than mine.

Does this mean that we should give up on trying to make positive changes in the world？ Should we stop trying to make the world a better place？ No! Don't ever stop trying to do good things! Even if the world is already a good place, we can always find happiness and satisfaction in trying to do good, in trying to make people's lives better.

But what about all the evil and suffering in the world？ Should we accept and love that as well？ That's the toughest part, I think. It's hard to accept that people are dying of diseases and famine and war and murder and abuse, and perhaps impossible to love that aspect of the world. You don't have to love it, but it helps to try to really understand it. Why does this happen？ What are the deeper reasons？ At the heart of the deepest reasons is humanity-we are all flawed creatures in some way, and that's what makes us human and beautiful.

&nb

A．The world is in a mess.

B．Humans don't know what's wrong with the world.

C．The world is promising.

D．Humans can't get adjusted to the changing world.