Light a Lamp in the Darkness

Does this picture offend you?

Uh-oh. Rant time. Hey, if Rick Mercer can do it all the time, I can once in awhile too! 

"Diversity" is a word that's thrown around a lot now, and in 2014 we should probably all be pretty comfortable with it. Unfortunately, that's not always the case. The ability to accept and include people of all different races, backgrounds and belief systems is a skill the world is still learning. 

Let's look at this picture for a minute. Maybe you don't believe it's acceptable to drink alcohol. Those wine bottles in the background might be making you uncomfortable. Maybe you don't celebrate Christmas and you're taking offence to the tree. Maybe you're looking at the redhead and judging my best friend for openly being a lesbian. Maybe you're a Jehovah's Witness and you're looking at me, thinking about what a shame it is that I'm going to die at Armageddon now. My last relationship was interracial and even in a city as diverse as Toronto, we got our share of strange looks from people. Didn't really bother us but after awhile we were pretty sure it wasn't just in our heads.

Y'all are completely entitled to your feelings, opinions and beliefs whether or not I or anyone else thinks they are valid. 

You should know though, that it does hurt to be judged, no matter how firmly each of us may feel rooted in our values. Unless your choices in life are intentionally hurting people, your life choices are your choices. 

One of my friends moms recently saw my FaceBook profile picture (above) when I posted a comment on a picture. She was so upset. She thought I was deliberately trying to stick it to Jehovah and the Witnesses. (Sidepoint: since when are the JWs ok with everyone being on FB and Instagram? When I was there, that was a no-no. I guess the rules continuously keep changing...)

I would like to state, for the record, when I do anything now, I really don't think about how the JWs will react. Sure, when I'm around my JW family I might act a little differently than usual, out of respect for their beliefs. But I am definitely not making choices for any other reason than...that's what I want to do. I'm just living my life, trying to be a good person, like most of the other people in the world. 

My friend in the picture? She's been there for me through thick and thin, saved my life even when literally no one else was here. If I went back to the JWs I wouldn't be allowed to be friends with her. The tree and the wine bottles? They're just fun and festive. And as for "sticking it to Jehovah"? I don't even believe that guy exists, so no, that's not my intention. 

The Buddha says: We can light a lamp in the darkness. Those who choose to judge others, whether they realize it or not, are the ones in the dark, trying to extinguish the rest of us. Let's shine some light. :)