Politics.

I usually don't write blogs like this. In fact, I usually only go on rants like this in my kitchen-- while sitting on our countertop watching my huh-knee make dinner (David, you are laughing right now because you can picture this scene exactly)...but I can't keep my mouth shut any longer.

Let me start off by saying I love people, I love our country, and I love the freedom this nation was founded upon.  That being said, I think we each have our own right to have thoughts and feelings about things, to vote by our convictions and to encourage others to do the same--while also sharing with one another why we think this or that.  It's how we learn and how we grow.  It's how we become educated people who can make healthy decisions and contribute to the world around us. It's why our country was started.

This being said, I love the idea of government and I think democracy is brilliant--ideally giving each of us the opportunity to have a voice and to make a contribution. But in the midst of the government/politicians getting out of control, I think the people are sometimes just as out of control.  In all reality, I think it comes down to this.  We need to learn how to communicate effectively.  Please, sweet Jesus, teach us how to communicate effectively.

I, of course, have my own thoughts about certain government policies. I am not hardcore right or hardcore left but somewhere in the middle.  Not totally in the middle, I definitely do have opinions, but they vary depending on the subject matter.  I have strong convictions on certain things while other things may not seem quite as urgent to me. This is not about my political beliefs though, it's bigger than that.

I have at times learned the hard way by divulging my opinion in a sharp and rude manner--believing that without a doubt, I was right.  And to be honest, I still hold to many of those convictions. Things have not changed with my beliefs necessarily but just in the way I communicate them.  And so this is what I ask of society (as well as my still-learning-self): Can't we all just get along? (someone please laugh)

But really, what I really ask is this. Can't we all just learn how to communicate with one another? I often wonder if most of the problems in our country and in our government are not necessarily based so much in choosing right or left but instead are vested in a lack of understanding of one another.  We often use our voices to attack one another, certainly not to honor one another, but to degrade, belittle, and speak over each other.  Perhaps politicians wouldn't spend so much time with ads that slander one another if instead they could sit down and have a conversation about why their convictions are what they are--and then listen to the other side.  Perhaps I wouldn't get so annoyed at all the Facebook posts that degrade the person I am choosing to vote for if we could all share our opinions in a way that valued each other's point of view.  Perhaps I would be more bold to say who I am voting for and why--instead of choosing NOT to simply because I don't want to waste my time being attacked on my VERY own FB page. We can't blame the politicians for back biting when "we the people" do the same.  We are not children.  We have to be at least 18 to vote, so let's act like it.

If you hold a certain conviction, great! I am so happy for you, really I am. And, please, feel free to share it! But, please, don't use it to stand on your soap box and rip apart anyone with a differing opinion.  I'll be honest, I'm embarassed by many of the people who hold the same convictions or even "religion" as I do who have absolutely no idea how to filter their communication or their own agenda.  On the other hand, I am also equally horrified by people who may hold opposite convictions who also have no idea how to listen or who act entitled to certain things.  I'm not against who you are--I'm against dishonor. And, so, the discrimination of one another just continues. On and on. We just sit around dishonoring one another while getting absolutely nothing accomplished.

It's really exhausting.

And I don't write this blog to just be another person complaining, I'm writing it to hopefully activate change.  I think that we can all agree that learning how to honor one another is the best way to communicate. It doesn't mean you let someone push you around or speak over you, it just means that in humility, you can correct someone or excuse yourself.  It also means that in humility, you listen to another person's viewpoint--even if it directly opposes yours.  It means that even if you don't get your way, you still get to keep your voice, your convictions, and your rights without stealing someone elses or having yours stolen.  It would mean peace--and progression.  It would mean the next generation could grow up in a country better than what we have now.  It might not mean that we always agree with the policies our government holds, but it means that at the very least we can have a say to change it.  And, hopefully, it means that we can prosper again because we would actually deserve our name--the UNITED States.

Well, I feel better.

If any of you are interested in my political beliefs and like to have good, stimulating conversation without fighting, I'm happy to talk. I love chatting about all the things we're not "supposed" to talk about in the workplace---Religion, Politics, etc.

And, I won't bite your head off. I promise. ;)