Once again I am moved by the words and actions of others. I am moved by the courage and honesty that some people are unafraid to share. Once again I moved by the change that can happen if you look around & see the strength in others. And once again I feel moved enough to say something......i.e. shameless blog steal....
I have questions when I read things in the news and in fellow bloggers posts. I question their motives; their opinions and most often, I question their common sense. But most of all I question their ability to love and accept. It doesn't seem like such a hard concept to master.......but I guess that makes me a naive, unrealistic little girl, huh? What a shame.
I feel so fortunate not to be burdened by hatred of other people. I feel happy to know I do not judge someone by their appearance, or by their choice of love. But maybe I do. Am I not human? Is it not human to err?
So I sat here this morning reading a blog post by a fellow blogger and at the end, there was a request to share his blog post on Facebook. This wasn't some strategy to selfless promote his blog - by rather to promote the content of the post....the message it carries.....a message of change and of acceptance. And yet, there I was staring at that little blue button 'FB' and I hesitated. Why? I have blurted out more controversial issues on my own page and was happy to 'debate' the issues and stand my ground - regardless of the lost of friends or hurt feelings. But for some reason I was hesitant to share this opinion. So maybe I AM part of the problem? Maybe I do have a certain amount of judgment towards others?
Oh how tiring.
So here it is.
Homosexuality - I don't care. Really I don't. In fact I am always confused by the fact that we need to make some distinction between 'gay' people and 'straight' people. I mean, why can't we all be people? Love who you will......be loved as you want......I'm happy just to know you are loved.
Religion - Ok.....and? Worship what you want. Believe in what you want. I suppose my only issue is that you don't expect everyone else to worship your 'god' too. I may question your choices but I do not condemn you for making them. I believe that debate and questioning other people's beliefs creates understanding and is a healthy part of learning.....not judgement.
Race - Why is it still a source of such unabashed hatred? I don't care what color you are; I care about WHO you are as a person. I have met and loved people of ALL races and backgrounds. AND YES, I have been hurt and angered by people of other races......but I don't dislike them based on their color but rather their individual treatment of me. I also do not allow my anger based on a personal interaction to taint my view of that race as a whole. Learn the difference!
Class - We live in the 21st century everyone. Get. A. Grip. Rich or poor we are all worth more than our material possessions. And if you have more than the next person - SHARE. It is a fundamental lesson we are taught in Kindergarten.
We all have rash moment of anger - where we judge someone for their actions and sometimes we hold all people of that ethnicity or sex or religion to that same standard. But for most of us we try and understand that personal interactions with one 'bad apple' shouldn't be the standard we hold all other to.
I don't understand what will drive a parent to hate their gay child. I don't understand why a person of color continues to be racial profiled. I don't understand why a child lives in poverty when there is such prosperity. I don't understand why you can hate someone for their choice of religion when you are taught tolerance and compassion. I don't understand why you say what you are told rather than what you really feel.
I don't understand and I never will. I can only hope that I teach my children acceptance and compassion - and they will help change the world.
Sharing that post is a good start....
