Casement

"Haha! That's really funny," I said, rolling my eyes in disgust. "You should really have your own sitcom."

I was responding to a snide comment made by some stranger passing by. By this point, I just shrug it off, if I am lucky. But if not, my hard, turtle like shell protects me and sends the remark zinging back. I started making my shell as a kid, when I just started to discover how cruel people could sometimes be. Since, people of all ages could be mean, people of all ages could be hurt as well.

Different people react to disparagement in different ways. Some hold it inside, and let it out later. Others keep it inside, never letting it out until the pressure has built inside them so much that they explode like a volcano. (I imagine these are the same people who have mental breakdowns.)

There are also the ones like me. People that cover it up with scathing a.k.a sarcastic comments, using them as a mask. Sometimes I even unconsciously wish that my comments hurt the person that made fun of me as much as his or her insulted me, but regret inevitably follows. Only after the words have jumped out of my mouth, do I realize that it is not an effective defense strategy recognizing the damage it has caused. So, this mask of cynicism is like a two-edged knife. It hurts both, the person stabbing and the one being stabbed.

Seemingly, there is a better way to react to such acrimony - Silence. I have heard people say "Silence is the best kind of denfense." But, this makes it hard to figure out who is more cold, heartless and unfeeling. Is it the person who made the comment, or is it yourself, for not being hurt?