In this WWE game where you watch all the choreographed spectacle of the muscle-bound lot beating the hell out of each other there is this group of three guys and a lady who call themselves Judgment Day. I’ve to confess that I kind of like the lady they call ‘The Baddest Woman on The planet!’ She makes everything appear so real! After all you know these wrestling shows for the most part are scripted with everything on paper. Yes injuries occur. But then, most of the time the injuries occur when wrestlers go off script.
Anyway, talking of ‘judgment day’ it is always like that for many of us these days. There are many who think that they can continuously judge everything and everyone and are answerable to no one. Whatever you do, whatever you say, however nice and humanely you act you never are out of the woods when it comes to the ‘judgment day’ crowd. They would be right on your heels. Because the name of their game is always dishonoring, discrediting, character assassinating and dehumanizing others. You can set aside the bigger issues and even in our day to day life you see a lot of such ‘judgment day’ behavior where everyone except themselves is target practice material. It’s funny we are in age where others claim to now more than you about yourself and the real stuff you’re made of! You’re not supposed to tell your own story because they tell it on for you as they have a completely different version.
It’s indeed astounding to say the least. If you mix with people and are seen around town often you’re target for the rumor mill. “I’m sure the guy is involved in some crime or else he wouldn’t have had so much money to drink week after week!”
“But I have heard he is paid an insanely big salary. He even lives in a twenty-thousand a month house.”
“I told you he’s up to something. Are you telling me I’m lying?”
“No; but from what I know about the guy he is a very gifted…”
“That’s enough; I told you he’s involved into something and that’s it.” You can call that the ‘judgment day’s’ final ruling!
If you decide, “I’ve had enough of this world, and I don’t want to mix with anyone;” and you try to live what you can call as semi-solitary life, you’re target for the rumor mill. “He must be doing something bad behind closed doors. I suspect him of spying….” OMG! The easiest thing to do for the ‘judgment day’ is come up with the ‘perfect evidence’ to have their story believed. And then if you try to play the balancing act like mixing with others for a while and then leading a quieter life for some stretch with limited social contact I can tell you you’re toast of the rumor mill. Though you haven’t packed up and jumped the fence to either side for good you’re target to all.’
You are judged by the way you dress. I mean there might be nothing wrong or offensive to others in your dressing style. Say there is this young girl who some days goes about life with jeans t-shirts and such attire. She might look a hell lot younger than she actually is and there is no riddle behind that except that she’s in more youthful clothes. The way you dress really does some wonders to your image. Now it is nice to say “Oh you look nice today. You should be wearing more of these lighter clothes;” I mean even though one doesn’t really mean it there is no harm in such saying nice words. But few do so. In fact the story would be different.
“Did you see how she is dressed today?”
“No, what’s she dressed in?”
“Jeans and a t-shirt so flimsy you could count every pore on her skin beneath it.”
“Doesn’t anyone tell her she is too old to wear such clothes?”
“I told you that woman is one big fake! In fact I’ve heard at night she…”
“I have heard that too. She wears the jeans during the daytime to fool people.”
Then on other days the same woman is dressed in some conservative dress giving her the look of that no-nonsense person.
“Did you see how she is dressed to day?”
“No I didn’t. In what is she dressed?”
“She is dressed in those clothes that make her look she is a CEO of some billion birr enterprise.”
“What’s wrong with that woman? Doesn’t anyone tell her she can’t fool us! Even jeans and t-shirts are more than enough for her.”
Now the ‘comments’ are made by the same two people. In whatever way she is dressed there would be the ‘comments.’ And the comments are never, “Today she indeed is smartly dressed. She should do more of that. I tell you that woman is real smart choosing her clothes. She knows what to wear and when.” No, never are such comments heard.
Look we can talk about the ‘judgment day’ mentality the entire month and we wouldn’t have even started! They write us unofficial memoirs and biographies for each one of us, and to be fair enough one can’t help admiring their creative genes!
The Ethiopian Herald February 19/2023