In recent months I have thought intensively about my identity. What makes me, me? I know that there are some things that first need clarification.
First off, I am American. Yes, I was born in the United States of America and that is my citizenship. But if you were to judge me just off that, you wouldn't know who I am.
If all you cared to judge me on was the basis of being American, you would never know that I grew up in Germany. You would never know that I have German heritage, with my Great Grandpa emigrating from Germany. You would never know that I have toured all over Europe, visiting wonderful places such as Paris, Rome, Dublin, and more. You would never know that I feel more comfortable among the clusters of historic buildings and gothic cathedrals that make up European cities than among the wide streets and sky scrapers of American cities.
But yes, I may have grown up in Germany, I may have German heritage, but I am still American.
More important, I am a human being.
As a human, I have felt moments of great joy where my heart soared, the warmth of love and feeling accepted - along with the loneliness of rejection. I have felt the great ache in my heart of immense sorrow and depression, the longing for friends and familiarity of loved ones. Just like anyone else, I want to be loved, feel needed, and be happy.
For some, that search for happiness, love, and importance leads down roads that are full of alcohol, drugs, and casual sex. For others they find their joy in pursuing sports and the camaraderie found in teams. Academic excellence is another route, as well as career advancement. Many seek romantic partners to accompany them. But I digress.
Humans are complex beings with intricate emotions and desires. You cant really find one aspect of them and judge the rest of what they are based on that single point. No, a single person is more complex than that. What I wrote above about myself, it doesn't begin to cover everything. Just a scratch on the surface.
In turn, nations and cultures follow this. No single aspect should be used as the sole point of basing judgment. If a single person is complex, imagine the complexity of the cultures we have created.
I don't write this to scare people off from studying cultures and people, but I do hope to at least counter some of the judging based on superficial ideas of others.
Too often we judge based on a single idea. I know, I have been guilty of this. Of course, I know that as humans we are not perfect, none of us are! That is why I understand that not every one is going to be everyone's friend. Nor am I saying we have to go out and make everyone our friend. What we should do is stop judging others because of their nationality, their skin color, their ethnicity, even their beliefs. None of those things can begin explain who that person is, or what they are.
Before we judge, we should get to know. Base your opinions upon experiences of that person. You may never know the full them - I am not even sure if that is possible without spending great lengths of time with them - but you can get a better idea. If you don't want to be friends, great. Don't hate them, don't spread rumors and judgments about them, above all don't be superficial to them. Be real.
Being real is tough - or maybe it is for me, which is something I hope to overcome in writing these blogs. If you are shy and reserved, you may want to hide yourself from the world. I am that way. I get scared when people get too close. I am afraid that they will only hate me if they truly get to know me. (I don't know why I feel that way - so don't try asking)
It is true that as we are not perfect and have all made mistakes that there are some things we don't care for people to know. Yet, those people who we worry about have made mistakes too. Christ taught to forgive all men, which includes yourself and others. It is because no one is perfect. We all have bad habits that we don't like and/or are trying to overcome.
I have written a lot, and I have digressed many times. I hope you can forgive me on that. =)
However, my main purpose in what I have been thinking and what I wanted to share is that we are all the same - we are all human. I am a human. So. Are. You. Let's not be superficial and judgmental. Life is too beautiful and short to waste it on that.
