capitalism impacts friendliness

welcome to introspection ft. harsehaj! ⭐️ i’m harsehaj, a 19 y/o always up to something in social good x tech.

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onto today’s topic: capitalism impacts friendliness 💸 

i’d consider myself to be a decently friendly person, but any time i go anywhere rural or the south in america, i’m always floored by how friendly folks are.

i remember visiting sachi in charlotte before orientation a few weeks ago and the first comment i made about the people was, “people talk so much here!” and i meant in the best way possible. 😁 every single shop owner firing up a conversation with me from nothing! i’m used to a simple “hello” and “have a nice day” being peak friendliness.

it goes to show just how different the culture is between big cities and the south or rural areas.

i’m reminded of this insight while currently on a road trip across east canada with my family for the past 2 weeks. every time we walk past someone, we’d receive a greeting, smile, and oftentimes even an entire conversation. 🗣️ 

it also helped further my realization that there’s more to life than chasing higher tiers of success and being zeroed in on your own life. i’ve always noticed that people are so happy and content living their simple lives — whether i observed this on a farm in japan, at an elephant sanctuary in thailand, a little thrift shop in charlotte, or the atlantic coast in newfoundland.

we don’t have to keep chasing more if the present is good. 🤷‍♀️ it’s hard to break out of the capitalist brainwashing that entire populations of large cities are victim to.

those that aren’t trapped in this tend to be friendlier. they’re happy themselves, so they can extend it to others with ease. :)

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