If I Could Be a Character From a Book, I’d Be…

Atticus Finch.

He represented to me such strength of character that is something to aspire to. He knew he was fighting a losing battle but that did not deter him from fighting it. It was on principle, to be an example to his children, that he risked his reputation and his life to defend the wrongly accused. He not only defended Tom Robinson but he did it well, to the best of his ability, never slacking even with the knowledge of the odds that were against him. He painted a portrait of himself that Scout and Jem would be forever proud of and made sure that his legacy would remain in that town.

He took a stand against prejudice when it was not popular to do, showing a calm and collected exterior even though on the inside must have been turmoil. When his kids were acting out their stories about Boo Radley, he tried to show them the importance of not judging others but looking at life through their perspective.

I read this book when I was 10, then again at 12 and yet again in High School at 14 and once more after that. Initially I was endlessly fascinated by Scout who was so interesting and intriguing but as I got older my focus switched to Atticus and the amazing character that he portrayed.

It is an inspiration to me to not only stand for something when it is popular or because everyone else is, but to do so even when I’m outnumbered, as long as I do it with conviction, with respect. I hope that I can one day be an example to my future children, leaving behind something that they can be proud of, teaching them lessons and experiences that they can learn and grow from. I hope to instill a love for humanity that is not dimmed by the injustices that oftentimes occur.

The World Would Be a Better Place If…

We could just accept each other. If we could all just embrace the idea that we are the same in that we have differences, that we are unique individuals, each with something to share, then the world would be much better for it.

Lack of acceptance and a refusal to embrace beliefs and lifestyles that are different than our own cause unnecessary pain and hurt in our society. Those that are different are ridiculed, sometimes causing them to hide their true selves, trying to be something they are not in order to please the people around them. They deny themselves their true nature, repressing their desires in order to please other people that will probably never be satisfied.

I have lived in a society where homosexuality is not just frowned upon, it is considered down right evil. There I saw people struggle, battle with their natures in order to remain a part of that society, in order to fit in. Those kinds of attitudes at their worst lead to hate crimes and if nothing else, serve to make others feel as if there is something fundamentally wrong with them, that they are not right and that is one of the most painful things to deal with. Homosexuals may try their hardest to fit in by taking up heterosexual lifestyles, allowing their lives to be consumed by guilt, deception and lies, for being who they are, by pretending to be something different and causing their partners to live a lie. All stemming from a refusal to understand their point of view, their struggle, their nature.

If we all accepted each other than maybe people who practice a religion different to the dominant one of any particular society would be respected. Every human being will not believe the same things, we will never all want the same things or desire the same things. We experience this life differently than those around us and we should be able to freely express that. It should be okay and understood that there will always be different religions and if we can realise this than we might become more open minded and learn more about other people and their cultures which I always believe is an enriching experience. If one does not believe in religion at all then that too should be respected.

Acceptance of culture as well, is another way in which this world would be so much better, so much richer. Realising that race, gender, ethnicity are things to be celebrated not hated. The vast variations in our skin colour are fascinating and beautiful. Males and females each have equally important contributions to make to our world and our ethnicities help us to have different perspectives and experiences that we can all learn from.

There are so many differences between us that people try to stamp down and remove but I think that largely this not the way to go. Sometimes acceptance can prevent years of bitterness, hurt, anger, even death. The world would be undoubtedly better, more beautiful for it.

Timeless Words Of Wisdom

“Human progress is neither automatic nor inevitable. We are faced with the fact that tomorrow is today. We are confronted with the fierce urgency of now. In this unfolding conundrum of life and history there is such a thing as being too late…. We may cry out desperately for time to pause in her passage but time is deaf to every plea and rushes on. Over the bleached bones and jumbled residues of numerous civilizations are written the pathetic words: Too Late.” — Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

It’s a lengthy quote and not one I know by heart but every time I read it I am inspired to play a role–no matter how small or insignificant it may seem–in moving us forward. I try to do this through keeping an open-mind about new ideas and possibilities, by respecting other human beings and not discriminating or stereotyping as those are things that definitely hold us back as a society. I try to be a part of movements to bring awareness to important and timely social issues such as human rights. MLK also said, “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” Those words are another favourite of mine and show the importance of every effort that is made in our world both great and small to bring us all collectively closer to equality in all aspects, showing us that everyone in this world deserves justice, it is not just for the few.

To my faithful few….

The people who I love most in this world are Christians, every single one of them. The people who I confide in, the ones that I trust with my life, the ones whose advice I take into account. This blog is not one where I try to focus on disrespecting a religion that many people focus their lives around. All I want is for people to take a serious look at their religion, whatever that religion may be. I speak about Christianity because it is there that I have experience. Over the years I have changed and yet in many ways I have remained the same. When asked if I am a Christian I have to admit sometimes grudgingly that, yes I am. It is something that I cannot completely escape. May be I don’t want to gamble and lose, I am not confident that God does not exist. Maybe its my upbringing that has so firmly implanted this idea that I can never be rid of it. Christian peers would say this is a good thing and others would say not so much.

One thing I know is that I no longer look at my religion in the same way as in time past. I am no longer nearly as reverent about it as I once was in thought, and in practice. Those closest to me who read this blog know this without a doubt. They are also the few in my life who would engage me with an open mind about the issues that I bring forth while most others would dismiss me as having deficient faith or respect for the Almighty.

To those few I say you are the ones that allow me to keep what little bit of hope that not everyone that subscribes to this faith are afraid of their own religion. Your willingness to think, question and listen to alternatives to what you are told to believe show me that there are others like me who practice their faith with rationality and attempts at logic. The fact that you are not quick to judge but understand my point of view and my right to express it inspire me to continue. As long as you indulge me I will contiue being irreverent.

Each of you know who you are and you know the role you each have in my life and I love you all.

Lies and Deceit

Sadly, honesty is rapidly depleting in our world today. More and more people are choosing to be dishonest. Lies and deceit have taken over the lives of many. Lies and deceit have destroyed the lives of many.

When people lie they cause other to live a lie. Living and believing something that is false can be a dangerous thing. Deceiving people and using them is cruel but yet people do it every day as if it is their right to do so.

People lie at work. They deceive their co-workers, employees, their employers. People lie to their families, to their wives, husbands, their children, their friends.

Lies and deceit destroy lives–both that of the liar and the lied to–both the deceiver and the deceived. What must it feel like to live your life believing one thing to then learn that it is false? It devastates, it hurts, it can even kill.

Those who lie and deceive will sometimes end up paying for their decisions. They lose the people they love and care about. They lose their possessions and the life that they built for themselves. They lose the very things they were lying to achieve, that they were lying to keep.

There are those who strive to live honestly, to be truthful in all they do. They provide a great example for others and help to make the world more bearable. However, despite these honest people, many will continue being deceptive.

No matter how many families, friendships and lives that lying and deceiving has destroyed, people will continue to do it … Always continue to do it…. But why?

Though home, I continue to rebel

Here I am back in my home country writing on my blog for the first time since April 22. It’s almost like I have abandoned my blog and to abandon this to me would be like giving up and re-conforming which I do not intend to do. But I must say it is weird to be back. I find myself spilling my views on the biblical stories and mainstream Christian beliefs to my quite conservative Christian family. I try to keep quiet but it’s like I cannot keep my views bottled up anymore. Sometimes though I feel like I should.

Have a question for God?

It has been said to me over and over throughout my lifetime (almost 24 long, long years) don’t ever question God. To this I ask, “Why not?” and I think I know the real reason.

You’re in this world … and that’s the important thing.

I have always been quite a realistic person. As such I’ve struggled with the flippant way–from my perspective–that some Christians are able to explain and identify with the things that happen in the world around them. The saying: you are in the world but not of it (developed from the scripture John 17:15-17) must be a favourite. That scripture in my experience is often used to teach of expound upon the belief that the believer must refrain from the worldly–sinful–distractions that most other beings engage in but rather they must keep themselves pure sort of like the message in the “and be not conformed to this world” scripture from Paul. However, oftentimes many Christians take it just that one step further and seem to develop an inability to realistically view the world around them.

Hi, you’re going to hell.

Having purpose is an important need for many–myself included. In religion there seems to be a common goal that culminates when your life ends. Whether this be heaven or some form of nothingness, the idea of working towards something firmly exists. To achieve the greater goal there are others that must be met. Virtues that must be lived by, pitfalls to avoid and rituals to upkeep. In Christianity it is also good to bring with you as many as you can on your journey and part of your purpose is to help others to see the truth of your faith and helping them to avoid the fate of hell.

Hell. The idea of people being sent to a place of eternal damnation filled with fire and demons and torment for exercising their God given free will has always bothered me.

In which I contemplate abandoning Christianity

If my religion was ever a help to me in the past, it certainly isn’t now. As a Christian I am supposed to be desiring and working towards a closer relationship with God–which seems an ambiguous endeavour at best to develop a relationship with an invisible, intangible entity. I am supposed to aim to reconcile the sometimes contrasting messages of the religion with my inability to understand and refusal to conform to some of it’s mainline ideals and beliefs.