It isn’t easy sticking to your principles no matter what, but it is ultimately satisfying in a way that the reverse is not. I believe that the nature of what is real and true is independent of how many people (if any) believe in it. The power of narrative to dictate facts is zero, beyond the narrative itself being a form of fact. This is similar to how feelings are facts (“Mary is angry”) whether rational or not, but the “feeling of knowing” has no fixed relationship to actual knowledge.
Living in a world where the very definition of reality has been undermined and attacked via social engineering and spiritual subversion is not always fun. Those who believe that their dogmas and doctrines define reality can be aggressively obnoxious to those who dissent from the Official Narrative™ of mass psychosis and mind control. The wait for reconciliation to a single shared understanding of reality is a painful and saddening burden. Riffing off the classic book Meaning of Liff, let’s give that bad feeling a (place) name — you’re a bit Dunstable when the social cosmos splits.
Yet for every downcast Dunstable there is a delightful Darlington. It is the sense of all having been resolved, that truth has vanquished lies, and virtuous endeavour has outlasted vicious propaganda. You are full of Darlington when a longstanding refusal to bow to a lie and subjugate yourself to criminals pays off. It is different from vindication, which flatters the ego and engenders risky pride. Rather, it is the sense of relief that justice has finally been served, and righteous principles have restored lasting peace — both inner and outer.
Feeling a bit Dunstable? Darlington is coming!