Just Like Me: (Audio)
Remember the song, ”Standing on the corner, watching all the girls go by…” (1956, just one year after my birth!)
Okay. I’m not a girl watcher! I’m a people watcher. I can sit by the shopping aisles and along the sidewalks around the world and simply enjoy watching people. From the view of my seat, I take in all the variety of “people” that I can. I’ve used their photo’s in past blogs. But this past week, while watching all the folks vacationing in Banff, Alberta, Canada, something struck me in a deep thinking kind of way.
If this past week has proven to me anything I already knew, then it is simply, “Everyone is Just Like Me!”
There is nothing unique about where I’m from, my culture, racial or ethnic origin, nor is there anything special about me just because I’m white, male, born in the 50’s and conservative. In today’s world, maybe there’s something more unique about the number of years I’ve been married to my best friend. (Hint, it’s nearly 43!)
I may like grits, and you don’t. But I grew up with grits a constant part of breakfast life and it’s like going home every time I make a bowl of grits! But I don’t like watermelon – and that’s a totally different story! You can find watermelon a common accessory on the serving line around the world, but you seldom ever find grits! Unless you are in the south.
Maybe I am special since I like something so uncommon around the world!
Walking down the streets, driving across several provinces and states, shopping through the aisles of strange looking foods, soaking in the scenery with others who are equally awed, I hear several languages, phrases that are unique to their source, and see many shades of hairstyles and skin color.
Watching others deal with their kids, ask questions of strangers, ordering food from a strange menu in a different language, laugh and joke with families and friends, I keep coming back to this thought,
We are more alike than we have ever thought, or imagined! Click To TweetYet, we often stand on opposing sides of that proverbial fence of differences. Some philosophical, religious, gender, or other equally unique criteria like language or region. While some successfully straddle the top rail, most of us are starkly stuck on one side or the other dealing with different issues that may come from culture, experiences, gender or race.
Still, we judge differences based on words, actions, deed, as well as appearance. The problem with judging is that much of it comes from our own personal perspective and historical view of things. It’s difficult to get past this to see the person behind our view.
I saw a news clip covering a famous sports figure who was apologizing in some way for some remarks he made about the opposite gender. I never heard him actually say, “I’m sorry.” All I could focus on is that he looked like a clown.
I try to see past the clown suit. Who is the man behind the mask? Why the mask? Why should I care? I realized I cared little for his words because of his past actions, examples, and statements. However, he’s probably no different than me other than we are coming from two different areas.
We are so alike even when our actions, examples, and words are so different.
A self-righteous attitude could utter, “But for the grace of God, there go I…”. Okay…maybe I’ve uttered that before. But when you see humanity from a global perspective, then you realize, again, how similar we are to each other! No one is greater, or lessor, than any other of God’s creation.
Perhaps our “sameness” is also our biggest difference. We may be the same, but until we get past that difference that separates us, we will probably never see the similarity. If anything, we live in a world where we have no global consciousness.
One last thought on this. When I travel to a different place, whether on the same continent or not, I like to walk into grocery stores. This is where you find the strange same, but different, feeling.
Whether in Israel, the UK, Canada, Hawaii, Alaska or any other far off place, there is something familiar about a grocery store. The brands, labels, language, and sizes may seem strange and different, but spend a little time studying the packaging and you will grasp the idea of similarity.
Just last week, I tell you, it was a familiar brand, but the words left a strange impression. And like people, strange impressions are left every time you take a moment to connect.
I’m still struggling with Whole Kernel Corn labeled as Peaches & Cream!