Opinions are a funny thing. They drive us as human beings and we tend to make a big deal of them, which is where this post comes in. We tend to make too big of a deal of them.
So I'd like to go into details on this side of this subject, but there's a bit more to this and I'm going to go into that at a later date -- ideally, tomorrow.
So now that I've got that out of the way, lets jump into today's rant.
We are individuals and we are all different. This is something that is terribly important to understand about the world, and something we hear all the time. Therefore, we have our own set of opinions and ideals as for how things should or shouldn't be, and that is how things should be. It would be highly unfortunate if we didn't! I'll jump into that a bit more tomorrow though.
The thing about that is we likewise need to recognize that other people have their own sets of ideals, and they will differ from ours. We all know that, and we run into that as we see arguments on FaceBook and among that group of people sitting in a corner booth at a restaurant. One of the places I see it most -- and am bothered by it, to be entirely honest -- is in politics. It is too apparent that we have a difficult time as a people in grasping the concept that not everybody is like us.
So I'm not going to jump into politics and how things should or shouldn't be in the government. Rather I'm going to advocate peace among everyone of any belief in spelling out the difference between accepting another's beliefs and understanding and respecting their beliefs.
Lets start with respecting each other and our beliefs. I constantly see demands for respect and understanding of beliefs. Lets take a look at what exactly is being requested here though. To respect something, according to good ol' Webster, is "to have due regard for the feelings, wishes, rights, or traditions of". To be understanding is "to be sympathetically aware of other people's feelings; tolerant and forgiving". Both of these are very reasonable things to expect from other people. Seeing other people's sides of things is yet another thing we'll save for another day (I'm really excited about that one actually) but it shouldn't be too complicated for us to not disregard and therefore disrespect other's points of view. Taking the time to understand another side of a situation makes it that much easier to avoid disregarding it.
Notice though, that in neither definition is the term "to agree" used. Think about all the people who request understanding and respect for their beliefs. It is often that they are desiring much more than simple respect and understanding. From what I've seen throughout my lifetime, it seems that what people really want is for people to accept their beliefs. Turning to Webster once more, the definition of the word "accept" is "to believe or come to recognize as valid or correct". There is a big difference between accepting something and respecting something. I can understand and respect your beliefs without embracing them, and you can do the same for mine.
If person A supports gay rights and person B does not, both parties should be able to get along and act peacefully and respectfully toward one another without agreeing. Once again, people will disagree with our ideals. That doesn't make them any less of a person. There is no need for contention when one party asks for understanding and the other person understands, but does not accept.
Stand for what you believe in, whatever that may be; but don't rip others down for standing for what they believe. Take some time to really internalize the difference between understanding and respecting what a person believes rather than accepting it. And next time you have the desire to accuse somebody of being disrespectful or not understanding because they don't have the same beliefs as you, reconsider.
Just remember we're all different, and that's okay!
♥//Brittany
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