With so many political and societal tragedies nowadays, there seems to be a stigma of stereotyping growing by the second. People are making assumptions left and right about their neighbors, their class mates, and even the people they pass on the street. As a friendly reminder that stereotypical judgements are not applicable to all people, here are ten things you do not know about the person next to you.
1. Their Name
If you are above the age of 13 and still do not understand the value in someone's name, you are wrong. A name tells you anything from where someone came from, to what they are like. A name is one of the few things that distinguishes a person from everyone else and gives them a place in this wild world.
2. Their Family
I was raise in an Italian/German household, with a lot of family members, a lot of noise, and a lot of passion. Anyone who knows me knows how much impact my family has had on my life decisions and the type of person I am today. A family may only be part of someone, but it is also the part that most people feel most themselves around- if you do not know someones family, you cannot truly know the full them.
3. What high school they went to.
No, high school does no determine someones life. In fact, high school often shapes you into becoming what you want to be in that it teaches you all of the things you hate and want to change. However, high school is the same for everyone. It is hard, messy, awkward, but above all, it is the simplest of times. I will forever be a Mustang because it taught me my love for God, my love for leadership, and my passion for a greater type of life. High school may not show the true you, but it sure does shape you in that direction.
4. How they like to spend their Sunday mornings.
Sunday mornings mean sleeping in, coffee and breakfast with my family, and typically writing. Sunday mornings for other people mean a long run, or a hike in the flat irons, or a shopping trip in Cherry Creek. Sunday mornings are the few times in a week when people can slow down and do what gives then joy. Sometimes that joy means cocktails by the pool, or Sunday morning service at your parish.
5. What excites them.
Everyone is excited by different things in life, that is what makes people unique. For some, they could practically have a heart attack if they get to go for a 10-mile run. Maybe seeing animals, like it does for me, can turn your day completely around. The fact of the matter is that being happy is subjective for everyone. Joy is just too great of a thing to be put into a singular box.
6. What calms them down.
I myself cannot listen to symphony music without wanting to go insane. One of my closest friends, on the other hand, has to regardless to calm herself down. I need to be in my boyfriends arms or cleaning something if I want to get my mind off something, while my best friend resorts to shopping. If anything tells you more about a person than what excites them, it is what brings them peace.
7. Their worst fear.
Oh, fears; they are the greatest of all ailments. People fear bees, spiders, rejection, and even the zombie apocalypse. Being afraid of a bug as a man does not make you weak, just as not fearing death does not make you strong. We are all afraid sometimes, and often those fears shape our decisions and personalities.
8. Their greatest life goal.
I want to be a mom, more than anything do I want to raise children and grow old with my husband. The man next to me at Starbucks right now could see me with a child and never guess that though, just like I can only assume he is a single entrepreneur and nothing else. I have a million and one goals in life but my close friends, much less a stranger on the street may never know or understand them.
9. How they were raised.
I was raised to love everyone. I was told that all people deserved a chance and that nothing is more important than hard work and passion. I was raised in a loving home with siblings and a big family. How you were raised can make you into what you were surrounded by, or just the opposite, but regardless how you were raised is how you turn out. Some of us are a result of our surroundings and some of us have overcome all of it.
10. How they feel.
A young woman to my right looks happy and carefree. But who am I to decide that? She could be in pain, she could be alone, she could be losing everything right now. How someone else feels is not for me to decide, just as no one can decide how I feel in this moment.
Ten things, among a hundred others, that you do no know about the person to your right or left. Ten things that all people have, cherish, and hold. The world may seem dark right now and many days may be predictable or seemingly stereotypical, but please do not forget that people are not just people. They are daughters, mothers, sons, cousins, waitresses, students, accountants, daredevils, adventurists, and pleasure-seekers. A person is not a person because you decided they were. A person is a person because of where they came from, where they are, and where they are planning on going.
