Popping Pills

This morning, I read in the newspaper that scientists had now found a cure for shyness, in the hormone oxytocin. That's the hormone that helps mothers bond with their newborn babies, and, I suppose, become blase about breastfeeding and being poked by all kinds of doctors and medical assistants down there. So now they're planning to roll out a medical cure for shyness that uses this hormone and makes it into some kind of pill to cure shyness.

Why? Why is it required? Why can't we be happy accepting that there are different kinds of people in this world - those who are shy and those who are bold? Why does everyone have to be out of the same cookie-cutter mould? Why can;t getting over shyness be an exercise in character building rather than something to be cured by popping a magic pill? What's the end to all this - don't like my hair---pop a pill, don't like my smile---pop a pill, don't like my assertiveness---pop a pill, feeling sad---pop a pill? Are we trying to erase everything that makes us unique and individualistic, that helps us use life as a learning experience and just turn into a race of designer beings with designer emotions?

Way back when I was a kid, I used to love reading. I was the typical bookworm, always nose deep in one book - or three. Whenever we went to visit anyone, my parents actually had to ban me from asking to see their books because otherwise I'd end up making no conversation, just trying to read as many of their books that were new to me as possible in the duration of the visit. Then one day, dad sat me down and had a chat and told me I was in danger of isolating myself and that while books were good and reading a terrific habit, I also had to learn to deal with real life and real people in order to be a fulfilled human being.

I started trying to be more outgoing, to make conversation, to try and understand other real people, not fictional characters...in the process making a lot of good friends, learning to talk to all kinds of people, learning to adjust, learning to enjoy company...and today I'm a person equally at home with being by myself or being with a whole lot of other people. It's helped in my work, it's helped in life perspectives...and it has helped build character to see the need for a change and make that change happen. The process of change itself is such a huge teacher.

How easy, simplistic and yet how much less rich in experience to just pop a pill. It's along the same lines as Botox and plastic surgery. I'm all for it if people have a disfiguring ailment or some such, but just because you have a couple of frown lines or laugh lines? Come on, people, those lines are there because you earned them by laughing and crying and worrying and living a life. Show them off proudly! Live your life, learn to cope with the issues, go through the process and the pain...because that's the thing that makes it worthwhile when you turn back - to look at your growth and evolution, to see how you've grown and matured through everything, good or bad, that life has thrown at you.