Imagine all the people...
Over a year and a half ago, I signed up for this amazing little creation called "the Internet." The only thing I really knew how to do was hit the chat button, so I did. I was thrilled! There were so many people from so many different places and so many different backgrounds. There were so many different things to talk about and so many different things to learn. It was love at first click!
I loved getting to know people without actually seeing them. It gave me an opportunity to get to know the real person. You couldn't see the house a person lived in, or the clothes they wore, or the color of their skin. In some cases, you might not know whether the person is male or female, and you may never know their real name. All those "could-be-barriers" were taken down, only to be shared if the person you were talking to wanted to share. This anonymity took away all the preconceived ideas we get when we look at another person. I really liked that!
Then, I started playing around in discussion areas. Suddenly, the same people who were playing and laughing and having fun in chat were getting downright serious. All those wonderful differences were being openly discussed and debated. Not all of these discussions were friendly OR fun. They were certainly interesting, though!
These discussions brought forth the topics of religion, race, sexual preference, politics, and thoughts and ideas about just about anything you can possibly imagine. These topics can be quite unpleasant even in polite face-to-face company, but when you add the factor of anonymity into the mix, these discussions can get downright ugly. Now why is that?
Here we have one of the most wonderful tools in the world to help us get to know as much as we can about other people who are different from us. That is a very valuable tool to help us grow mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. How can we possibly waste a tool like that? What is missing that is keeping us from using it? Acceptance. Why in the world can't we accept other people for who they are and respect them not only in spite of, but also because of, their diversities?
Why? Because of our own fears, our own low self-esteem, our own feelings of inadequacy. It has nothing to do with THEM and everything to do with US.
Imagine for a moment that you are sitting at the dinner table. You are with your family, talking about your day, enjoying that extra slice of cheesecake, and then WHAM! Your child says, "Mom, Dad, I am gay." In your mind, homosexuality is morally and ethically and spiritually wrong. What do you do? Remember, this is the child you love.
Latest Articles