Viewing a single comment thread. View all comments

mamastax t1_iqykeht wrote

This always makes me sad!! To think Bob Ross was sad!! I cannot. Just sitting there, feeling low, waiting on the good times. My heart.

439

ShogunFirebeard t1_iqzfb4b wrote

Oh boy… you might not want to watch the documentary about his life. Bob had plenty to be sad about.

171

mamastax t1_iqzneqq wrote

I don’t think I could cope

49

StrokeGameHusky t1_ir0130g wrote

It’s a true American story.

Man uses his passion to teach and to make others happy, then some greedy assholes get him to sign his rights away to the point his son can’t even use his own last name to teach art.

America! Yeah!

174

trippstick t1_ir0a9fq wrote

Its fucked up but you gotta read what you sign or hire someone you trust to do it. Evil will always come after you unprepared. However if you expect it and do the homework you can make it out of here with dignity and sanity intact.

27

Delbuns t1_ir1gff7 wrote

Except if you watched the documentary it’s pretty much implied they forged his signature or tricked him into signing when he was mentally incompetent.

12

NewPCBuilder2019 t1_ir1h0km wrote

I find that the people I know that objectively drew the roughest lot seem to break towards actually having a good outlook on life. Like, we spend our whole lives in this anxious state about how bad things CAN get that when you actually do catch a string of shit, you suddenly realize how good things were and can be again or something.

Some way to harness this for everyone, man. Would be neat

8

IWearACharizardHat t1_ir1pqzk wrote

Confirmation bias, the ones that aren't optimistic about shit circumstances end up dead

4

runningraleigh t1_ir254di wrote

I believe you're thinking survivorship bias, but yes

3

JustSteph80 t1_iqyu5fl wrote

You'll often find that those who try the hardest to help others do so because they have also struggled. ❤️

117

thaddeus423 t1_iqzt5ir wrote

They would shield anyone they can from the pain that they’ve known all too well.

9

CRATEBOYZ t1_ir10bkz wrote

I feel this. There are humans behind the motivational poster accounts and they might be doing it for themselves as much as they do it for others.

2

AmazingBarfingDick t1_iqyqsu1 wrote

Hey buddy, I hope your heart can find some light tonight. I know what it means to be low. I hope that soon you can laugh in the face of your sorrow.

44

dingman58 t1_iqz9mj7 wrote

Laugh in the face of your sorrow. I love that. Sometimes I laugh at inappropriate times and I'm not sure why- maybe it's just the ridiculousness of it all, the complete arbitrary meaninglessness of everything. But people get upset and think I'm laughing at them, and I'm not, I'm laughing in the face of it all. Thanks!

9

cldw92 t1_iqzyr0l wrote

Humour is one of the greatest defenses against sorrow

Sometimes the situations we find ourselves in are so absurd, that when we take a step back we realize how insanely unlucky we are.

And yet still things can get worse. Life is weird.

On the flip side there are times where we just luck out too. It probably all evens out for the average person.

7

AmazingBarfingDick t1_ir06x7r wrote

Reminds me of the parable of the Chinese farmer:

“There once was a Chinese farmer whose horse ran away. That evening, all of his neighbors came around to commiserate. They said, “We are so sorry to hear your horse has run away. This is most unfortunate.” The farmer said, “Maybe.” The next day the horse came back bringing seven wild horses with it, and in the evening everybody came back and said, “Oh, isn’t that lucky. What a great turn of events. You now have eight horses!” The farmer again said, “Maybe.”

The following day his son tried to break one of the horses, and while riding it, he was thrown and broke his leg. The neighbors then said, “Oh dear, that’s too bad,” and the farmer responded, “Maybe.” The next day the conscription officers came around to conscript people into the army, and they rejected his son because he had a broken leg. Again all the neighbors came around and said, “Isn’t that great!” Again, he said, “Maybe.”

The whole process of nature is an integrated process of immense complexity, and it’s really impossible to tell whether anything that happens in it is good or bad — because you never know what will be the consequence of the misfortune; or, you never know what will be the consequences of good fortune.”

-Alan Watts retelling the parable

We can believe the world is conspiring against us, believe that only favorable things are happening for us, or accept that the game isn’t over until it’s over, and what set you back years ago could be setting you up years from now, and vice versa. What’s happened can’t be changed, what will happen is unknown. All we have is today and really, just this moment, and what we make of it.

16

Ruins_72 t1_ir11b91 wrote

Thanks AmazingBarfingDick, this is something I've never heard before but I wish I had sooner

4

Vincent541 t1_iqzor7n wrote

This episode was the day after his wife died was diagnosed with cancer. Very sad moment indeed.

Edit: don't want to spread misinformation, apparently she was still alive, but diagnosed with cancer. Very sad nonetheless.

14

SayuriShigeko t1_iqzpxrz wrote

Other comments clarified she was still alive when this originally aired, but had been diagnosed with cancer :(

7

implicate t1_iqzpq57 wrote

As others have pointed out, this is not true.

She was sick, but still alive at that point.

5

Havain t1_iqzqqko wrote

I mean that's exactly what he means though, it's okay to be sad, there's nothing wrong about him being sad. Being sad about being sad is a vicious circle that's hard to break. Be happy that you're able to be sad. Be thankful that you can appreciate the light after darkness.

6

Vesuvias t1_ir0atps wrote

Bob had a lot of sadness - but he always carried a light with him in the darkness.

2

Needleroozer t1_iqzqotb wrote

Yeah, really motivational. "Whenever you're depressed, just wait for it to go away! :-) "

−12

perturbaitor t1_iqzte34 wrote

What he's saying is that you can relax the clenched fist of brooding and doubt. That additional suffering on top of the sadness is optional.

20