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by Donald B. Ardell, Ph. D.
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Wellness in the Headlines
(Don's Report to the World)

Don't Be Normal! (Encore)

Wednesday July 9, 2008

Mothers dread to hear a teacher or other authority figure say, "Your child is not normal." I'm afraid my mother got that news more than once. Of course it can be bad news if it's a medical doctor telling the poor woman her new baby has three heads, but on most occasions, it might be appropriate to allow for the possibility that not being normal has its advantages.

Why? Normalcy is overrated. To be normal in America is to be overweight, unfit, stressed, overfed and undernourished. Being normal involves looking for others to blame for your troubles, having a propensity to seek excuses and flee from accountability and avoiding responsibility whenever possible. The normal American does not like his/her job or profession. The normal person is superstitious, ill informed, insecure and follows a guru, diet or 12-step program. Mr., Ms. and Mrs. Normal usually lack positive passions, but identify to excess with spectator sports, political sex scandals, and the cult of celebrity worship. In addition, by the time the normal person reaches 40 years of age, she/he is either divorced or stuck in or recovering from an unhappy relationship.

These are among the reasons I have to conclude that normalcy is seriously overrated. Another term for normalcy is mediocrity. I think you can do better than to settle for a lifestyle based upon the mediocrity of moderation, another term for normalcy.

A decade ago, a poll announced on TV NATION (8/4/95) revealed that 28 percent of respondents self-identified as "normal" Americans said they would like to be King of England, but not if it meant they had to marry the Queen.

What is the alternative to being normal? If normalcy is so unappealing as I suggest, what might replace it?

I favor exceptional lifestyles, the pursuit of selective elements of excellence. It's not normal to be a lifestyle artist. If this were normal, we would have a very different society. How different? I don't think we'd recognize it!

We certainly would not spend more than 1.8 trillion dollars each year on medical expenditures.

As Dave Barry might say about normalcy: "This is a classic example of what grammarians call a pluperfect connubial imprecation which, in layperson's terms, means that it violates state and federal health-warning laws."

Be well. Don't be normal and please, always look on the bright side of life.

Note: An earlier but less compelling, profound and earth-shaking version that only hinted at the revolutionary potency of this essay appeared here on March 26, 2001, also entitled Don't Be Normal. Additional articles related to the "normal" theme may be found in the archives.

Domain: mental
Subdomain: emotional intelligence

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