Making a Point

Recently I’ve had a couple of people mention to me that I haven’t posted a blog in quite a while. First & foremost, I’m always amazed and humbled by people’s interest in anything that I may have to write, so my most sincere thanks to anyone and everyone who reads my blog.

To be honest I have not been inspired by any particular topic or subject that I haven’t written about already. Probably my biggest reason for not posting is that so many people are so sensitive and easily offended by people who may not agree with them or share their same views. What a sad state of affairs this is, and I truly believe that our 1st Amendment rights are under attack, and of all places, at many of our colleges and universities!

I’m not sure if some people don’t realize that you can host someone with different perspectives and beliefs than yours without necessarily endorsing what they have to say. I have learned over the years that it’s more important to listen to opposing viewpoints as compared to living in an echo chamber. Comfort zones are nice and give us a chance to recharge our mental & physical capacities, but you were never meant to stay there. In order to grow you need to experience the ying & yang of life, to feel the pull from opposing forces. And yes, sometimes you need to pick a side and stand up for what you think is right, but at least do it from a perspective of comprehensive knowledge instead of a narrowly defined bias filled with cherry picked facts and data. And with that, don’t be afraid to recognize your bias and how it affects your perceptions of the world. To quote Walt Kelly – “We have met the enemy and he is us.”

We are all guilty of having bias and prejudice, what we should not be guilty of is allowing those perspectives to continue to inhibit our growth and unduly influence our view of the world and each other. I pray each night that we learn to accept our differences and that we use those differences to make the world a better place for all of us. And when we can’t, that at the very least we don’t use those differences as a reason to cancel or inflict harm on others.

We are all children of God, maybe it’s time we start remembering that, or better yet, start being examples of such.

As always, thank you not only for reading but for also for accepting me into your life, and for keeping me pointed in the right direction.