I am tired of the false labels that zealous people love to hang around the necks of those they perceive to be different. If they can't make a convincing argument for their beliefs, they hang a negative label on their opponent.
"Homophobe", "racists", and now "white privilege" are labels designed to make the "others" feel guilty that they are not as wonderful as the "intellectually enlightened".
I loved a quote from Stephi who responded to a blog about "white privilege".
"There is no such thing as white privilege, the phrase is a lazy misappropriation of class privilege, and the concept is utterly rejected outside the USA. If white privilege really existed, it would be a social privilege that applied to all white people regardless of wealth or social station, this clearly isn’t the case."
In over 60 years of life I have learned one very important lesson:
Everyone else's perception of us is usually better than our own.
I have lived and travelled mostly in the western United States, with random trips to nearly every other part of this Nation and countries in Europe. I have met and spoken with many people from many different walks of life. The message always remains the same.
If you think you are a loser, nearly everyone else shares your attitude about you. If you believe you are a valuable, participating citizen, most others will agree.
Where you live makes a tremendous difference as to how you see the world. A young black man in Salt Lake City can be just as overwhelmed as a young white male in Nigeria. A 16 year-old Protestant girl on her own in Cairo would have just as much trepidation as a Muslim woman in Rome. Whenever we see ourselves as a minority or find ourselves outside our culture, it is easy to feel threatened. By seeing the best in others and being our best selves, we overcome our fears and excel in what ever environment we are a part of.
There are some narrow-minded people that at first glance will place you in a pigeon hole that resembles the last person they met who looked or acted like you. If you act as they expect you to act, you will remain in that pigeon hole. If you act the best you really are and can become, they will move you to a more elevated position in their minds and hearts.
The writer and philosopher, Johann Wolfgang Goethe said, "Treat a man as he is and he will remain as he is, but treat a man as he can and ought to be, and he will become what he can and ought to be."
If we act as we were, we will always be seen as we were, but if we act as we can and ought to be, then people will see us as we can and ought to be.
Idiots, bigots, and victims are not confined to any particular race or locale, but they are most skillfully surpassed by those who do their best and treat everyone else as though they are important.
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| A still from "The Illusionist" |
The parable is often told of a man who was sitting along the road at the entrance to a town.
A stranger happened by and asked, "What kind of people live in this town?"
The man responded, "What kind of people lived in the town you came from?"
"They were all liars, and thieves," the traveler responded. "I hated everyone of them."
"That's what kind of people live in this town, too," the man replied.
A short time later another man happened by and asked, "What kind of people live in this town?"
The man responded, "What kind of people lived in the town you came from?"
"Oh, they were the warmest, kindest people I have ever known," the traveler voiced, "I hated to leave that place."
"That's what kind of people live in this town, too," the man replied.
Physics tells us that if you conduct an experiment to see if light is a particle, it will act like a particle. If you test to see if it is energy, it will act like energy.
If you spend your entire life digging a hole to stand in,
you shouldn't complain when you can't see the sun. - dlm
We each have the ability to change or remain as we are. Neither prisons, enemies, friends nor family can prevent us from becoming what we truly believe and want to become.
We will always see in others what we are looking for. Look for the good, look for their potential. Most of those who don't succeed, have never been taught that they could. We seldom realize how the small acts of kindness and approbation we give away each day, change the lives of so many of those we associate with.
Be the mentor, love without reservation. Follow the example of the greatest mentor ever, who said, "Love one another as I have loved you."
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