First World Problems

First World Problems

See youtube video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D2p5svFJ9cQ

A week or so before I heard this teenager’s First World Problems Rap, I heard the term ‘First World Pains.’   I don’t recall the first example but once you’ve heard a few you get the idea.  Here are a few more from their website :

·        There’s never a good marshmallow to cereal ratio in my Lucky Charms

·        I didn’t get into Harvard so now I’ll have to go to Yale

·        My bank doesn’t have a drive-thru ATM

·        My ice cream started to melt so I had to eat it really fast

First world pains.   A clever way to say ‘perspective is everything’ by drawing attention to our larger context.  A way to say ‘let go --- it’s not that big a deal.”  A way to say “really???  That’s the worst you’ve got going?”

               Of course, it’s not a terribly new concept, which is why the way it gripped me was intriguing.   The term "First World" refers to industrialized, capitalist countries like the US or allied with the US.  It was a term coined during the cold war.  Following the cold war it took on a slightly different meaning with a greater focus on so-called development levels.  Second World" referred to the former communist-socialist, industrial states and Third World Countries referenced countries where poverty was greater, the Gross National Income was much lower, political, human and civil rights were often at odds with ours as was freedom of information.

               Comparisons have always been made and I bet I am not alone recalling a time when it was common to hear ‘remember, children are starving in Biafra’ from a parent trying to get dinners finished by reluctant eaters.

But this engages me differently.

               Shortly after I heard the term, I found myself trying it out  - not in the “I think I’ll go try this out-sort of way” rather in the “the phrase somehow stuck right here, in my psyche, just looking for places to land.” A niece posted that she was waiting in a long line at Starbucks and I thought, that’s one!  First World Pain.  A man I was on an airplane with was complaining about delays -------on his way back from a vacation in Costa Rica and I thought, that qualifies! I had some complexities with my bank account in Mexico ---------- where I have a retirement home.  That definitely qualifies!

I do note that it was the humor that grabbed me first, not some altruistic belief that I should tend such things.  If it were that simple, I would have been compelled years ago by the Biafra comparison.  Humor has magical powers!  In his rap, Zack was able to capture the truth, ‘wrap it’ in humor and ‘rap’ it to a beat and a song that tells a compelling story albeit a tad exaggerated at times -- -but not always.  And what’s interesting is that it has been contagious.  Thousands of people post daily to twitter:

·        I had something witty to say but the conversation changed before I could use it

·        I have to wake up at 4 am because Im going on vacation

·        I got hired, now I’ll have to wake up early

·        Too rich for financial aid, too poor to pay for college

·        Can’t find my phone, can’t call it because I left it on silent

·        I’m hungry but don’t want to cook

Some are seasonal....

·        I have a really nice house so trick-or-treaters expect better candy

·        I live in the country and don’t get many trick-or-treaters, have left over candy and have to eat it myself.

And now here’s your chance.  You could end up on youtube too with millions of people tuning in for your rap!  Seriously now, you needn’t rap it, but take a moment and think, what first world problem did you have this past week, maybe even this morning?

But, now, let’s take on some heavy lifting.  Naming first world problems invites us to dig in deeper to an analysis of what we give ourselves up to when it comes to angst and at the same time invites us to a place of gratitude.  We can take this FWP lens and embed it into our daily lives in a way that is transformational to our own selves and therefore to everyone around us.  And when we do that, change ourselves for the better, we free up more and more of our spiritual power to offer love and light into our world. 

The heavy lifting means beyond the humor to the real analysis.  It means moving beyond ‘that’s funny and yeah, sort of true’ to the hard question of what does it mean and how do I let it change me for the better?  It means moving from OMG, that dental work is going to cost how much??? FWP – I can use a credit card for that excellent dental care and have a job that permits me to pay it off quickly and my daughter has a schedule that will allow her to take time to have it tended quickly.  It means moving from I want to cut my right leg off at the knee because it hurts so much on rainy days to I live in a world where I have access to effective pain management, knee replacement technology advancements each year, the ability to alter my schedule should I need to seek care, health insurance, family and friend support and a freezer for my icepack.  It means moving from I want the election to be over because watching, reading and hearing the commentary is soul sucking to I live in a country where we have elections, where we can disagree without fear of imprisonment or worse, where we can impact policy locally and nationally.  It means living a deep and abiding appreciation for all that we have in the larger context of the entire world community AND acknowledging our humanness along the way.  That acknowledgement is the piece that allows us to fret and laugh along with young Zach Katz as we moan from time to time about the problems and pains we perceive in our days.  Because, when all is said and done, which never truly happens, problems are problems – and sometimes a bad hair day really is just that and it’s nice to have someone who can scoop you into their arms when you’ve  managed to hit every red light there was, even if it was on the way to a manicure.  But if we’re striving for our best selves, that we might impact our lives, our communities and our world, we should keep two thoughts near and dear to our minds and souls.  It’s  all connected.  We might not be able to solve all the problems in the world but we can acknowledge that they are ours.

And thanks be to this young man’s rap, it’s helpful to ask – “this pain, this problem, is it first-world or not?”  I’ve found the asking alone, invites me to humor, humility – and both are good for my soul.