All kinds of people make this world, but there are two of a certain species that cause the greatest flurry in their lives and the lives of others. The first category I would call the “Glasshouse Dwellers” and the second species I would call the “Rooftop Dwellers”.
The Glasshouse Dwellers or GHD are primarily self-sustained, independent people, living in their own world, cocooned in the confines of their houses, making the best of whatever they can. They are usually enlightened, stylish, vibrant, opinionated, modern, and have carved a place for themselves in their society and workplace. They are looked upon by other people for advice and ideas for elevating their own living standards, and they just love all the attention. In fact, most of the activities in their life are dedicated towards living differently, uniquely and purely for themselves, and also for attracting attention. This is where the “glasshouse” adjective finds it place in their lives.
The GHD will do as they please, rather only as they please. They will not try to please you or meet you with open arms. And yet they live their lives as if they were putting up a show for other people. They will do things differently but not surreptitiously. Because they want you to watch, to applaud, to learn, to pursue – they want to be the world’s role models or trendsetters. This doesn’t mean that they do outlandish things and expect social approval. They do normal things with a mind of their own and with a personal touch of distinctiveness, and then sit back in their glass-houses, awaiting and invoking mass-approval.
Needless to say all hell breaks lose in the glass dwelling when someone proves them or their way of living, ideas or activities as wrong. Worse still if someone displays a better way of solving a problem or setting the house in order, the GHD takes a great ego-bashing. If someone else builds a glasshouse, the GHD resents and swears enmity till the end of the world. They have lesser friends and more “sworn enemies” on their list. They know more people who can cheat them, or distort their public image, or ruffle their proud feathers, than those who can be their genuine friends, companions and advisors. The GHD are primarily, self-satisfied but lonely people, and the only good thing about them is though they worry about what other’s think of them, they still are able to live their lives the way they want. They are not exactly rebellious or even revolutionary, but their novelty is unique and often impressive.
This brings us to the question that is the Rooftop Dweller or RTD better off than the GHD! The RTD are the kinds who are not independent-thinkers or people with distinctive styles. As rooftop dwellers they keep on prying into other people’s life and houses in an attempt to gain insight into what they perceive as a better way of life, thought, food and dress. RTD don’t have a choice or a style of their own; they are always conforming to trends of the masses. They personally may not like what they so diligently pursue, and may just feel unsure about things once in a while, but their consolation is that if the next-door neighbor is doing it then it must be fine.
Rooftop dwellers are also the “displaying” kinds. But they don’t sit back in their houses, waiting for people to notice them. They scream their presence from the rooftops. They will call on people to take notice of them, and discuss ideas and trends that they “stole” from other people. They want to be fashionable and fancy but they don’t realize that fashion can be very personal and is more defined by attitude and class rather than external appearances. They forgot the old saying, “One man’s meat is another man’s poison” ages ago. If the neighbor or the relative has it, they too have to acquire it. Utility, productivity, usability, and similar adjectives are lost to the RTD. There possessions are galore and may be trendy, but neither unique nor worth all the efforts they made in acquiring them.
RTDs have their own bad days and have frequent mood swings. If someone has acquired or done something better, quicker, faster and maybe cheaper than the RTD, the RTD feels super-cheated. They want to walk hand-in-hand with the crowd and be amongst the first and the foremost to do things the way everyone advocates. They seek social approval and go all over the place declaring their latest acquisitions or the new changes in their life, invoking discussion, debate, approval, suggestions and even disapproval.
Disapproval or even a suggestion otherwise throws their life off-course. They immediately get into quick-fix mode and try to get things sorted out the way everyone would approve and appreciate. But it’s hard to please one, it’s hard to please all, and the RTD is the hardest to please. RTDs have many friends with whom they will share and converse, and yet the RTDs are also lonely people, because the thirst for social approval, and appreciation keeps them ill-at-ease and always on full-throttle, and always on the rooftop. Their happiness is short-lived because a pin-prick of criticism bursts the bubble of euphoria.
Be it the GHD or the RTD, it is evident that our lives are predominated by social influences. Social approval can be sought, or it can be demanded. The confident and the strong have greater chances of survival in a social environment that is more critical than supportive. Maybe the key to happy existence is still closer to the GHD, if only they would shed the human follies of ego, pride, and demonstration. The RTD has to learn to love themselves and invoke greater degrees of confidence and well-being … till then each one to their own worlds!
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