Treat People Like They Are People, People

My mom fell flat on her face a couple nights ago.

She is trying to figure out how to tell people why half her face looks like she was knocked out at the voting polls this Tuesday, so I figured this was a good way to share it:

She was running outside, took too wide of a turn, and because of the clumsiness that the good Lord gave her, she fell, face down onto the concrete.

And when she walked inside to reveal her beautiful, but in much need of some TLC, face, my dad’s first reaction was: “We are going to a wedding in 3 days.” More on this later.

I haven’t written in awhile, and I don’t know why.

It may be because I worked all last week and haven’t stopped moving until this evening.

Or that the Cubs won the world series.

Or that this election seems to be dividing a country that is in so much need of uniting.

But in all honesty, I haven’t written because I haven’t wanted to add to the mess.

I haven’t wanted to add to the hurt and the frustration and the confusion.

The frustration that for some reason the United States is anything but united.

The confusion in how the Cubs even got to the World Series in the first place.

The hurt that my 8th grade small group was having more anxiety over the election than I was.

I am thankful for our freedom of speech here in America. I am thankful that I can say Jesus’ name and not be threatened or banned from my own country or family. I am beyond grateful that my opinions, my beliefs, can be heard. 

But what makes freedom of speech so difficult, saying Jesus’ name loud and proud so painful, is that it seems to be doing more bad than good.

We all suck. Every single stinking one of us. We all have our own opinions, we all have made our own share of mistakes, and some of us have been lucky enough to not have the cameras shining on us as we took the fall.

People are people. We all are imperfect. We all lie and steal and cheat more than any of us would care to admit.  Believe me, I am no better.

But we all have a choice. We all have a vote. And we made those choices. We cast that vote.

And we all knew the outcome. We all knew that one of us was going to be wrong, and one of us was going to be right.

Because nobody wins when all we want to do is win. No one gets no where if all we do is fight.

So our country made a decision. Our freedom of speech and democracy did what it does best: let us choose.

But remember, we are all different. So our choices aren’t always going to line up.

And that is freaking okay. I am not saying anything about this election or our countries choice to elect our new President.

I am not saying anything about Hilary Clinton or Barrack Obama.

I am say everything about all of us.

I am saying that we are all people, who all make mistakes, who all have opinions, who all make choices, who all love and want to be loved. We are all people who feel deeply, love deeply, care deeply. 

We are all people, people.

So treat people like they are people, people. Everyone has a heartbeat. Everyone has an opinion.

Everyone matters. And we have to choose to live that way.

Not everyone is the same. And that is a good thing. Cause man would we all be boring if we weren’t able to trip on a curb and fall flat on our face to then fly all the way to California three days later to reveal the half bruised face to the entire family.

Donald Trump is a person. A person who worked to make a living. You are a person who may have a family or a new spouse or a baby on the way. You are person who works hard for your family, your spouse, your baby.

You are a person who feels, who cares, who loves. And so is Donald Trump. And Hilary Clinton. And every single stinking person on this planet.

“You don’t have to see eye to eye to work shoulder to shoulder.”- Kid President

We are all people.

So start treating one another like it.

“We’ve got a whole world to make awesome.”- Kid President

See ya soon,

Stephanie Lynn