Shrunken Length

It is 4:32pm and I am in the "moodood" to write a blog. Surprisingly it is technically only the second day of summer vacation, but that sounds wild. It feels more like the second week, and I do not know why. I've been spending a lot of time doing random activities that range from playing volleyball to watching TV to trying to understand the teenage population. xD Hmm..I guess I can start by welcoming some new friends to the blog. Hi Matt and Brittany! :)

It has been pretty rainy the past two days, on and off showers, some rumbles of thunder, and now the sun is peaking out but the temperature is cool. However, I am not here to report the weather...I guess it just is a boring way to begin a paragraph. :P Actually, here's some more on the weather. It is now thundering AND being brilliantly sunny. What a neat combo, eh? I agree.

I've seen quite a few movies lately, and I usually get the feeling of this general theme being present in all of them. "We're all in this together." Well, alright, so what does that mean? "Yeah yeah let's be mushy love each other and united we'll hold hands?" No. Not even the "I've been in your shoes, you'll get over moving to a new school don'tchu worry honey!" I think I tend to observe a lot, or so it feels that way. Every person is so different, yet so very alike. It seems that noticing the differences is much easier than taking the time to realize the similarities that exist. Take two fruits, for example. An apple and an orange, two very basic fruits, perfect for a compare/contrast paper, sound familiar? Oh yeah. Well if you were to ask a three old to describe the two fruits, I bet the first thing he/she would say would be "the apple is red and the orange is orange." Alright, why wouldn't he/she be more likely to say "both have seeds" or "both are healthy"? Maybe because it requires more thought, maybe because he/she is not even at the level to even know those facts exist. Contrasting them just seems so much easier in every way. Now don't you think that's just silly or do you think it is amazing?

Some of us might take that extra step to examine the similarities between an orange and an apple so much more than any three year old would ever be capable of. There might be a person out there who when walking down the street, doesn't think "wow that guy has grey hair, he must be old and, hmm, wrinkly." Instead they think "wow that guy is probably full of knowledge and wisdom for all his years are worth." There might even, -gasp-, be some person out there who actually realizes regularly that people are all in this together. Hmm..that sounds familiar. I wonder why? Maybe it's true, maybe it's false. That is for you to decide. But think about it, if we are all in "this" together, why would you want to hinder your teams progress in any way, shape, or form? Why would you want to judge differences? Is being nice better than being mean? Is that bully going to make it any farther than the the person they bullied? Hm. If you're labeled pretty, and you're labeled not, why does anyone care? That is SO hilarious. Refer back to the fruits. If Mrs. Apple is deemed no longer drop dead gorgeous because, -gasp-, her stem is tilted at the wrong angle, will dorky Mr. Orange worry his bruise is too noticeable? Wow, did you hear that? I think it is a crowd of loud people screaming "LAME!!" :P On another occasion, if a group of apples are name calling the oranges "bright blobs of citrus!", would it make literal sense for the oranges to counterattack with some fruity remark or be the better fruit and, -gasp-, accept the fact that everyone there is a fruit, all together they are, in one big category with the label that they are healthy and to be eaten seriously? :P Tough decision? Maybe. Sort of like war a little. More fuel for the fire, you kill my guy I'm gonna kill yours. You'd think that sort of mindset would come to an end by the later young adult years. And for some fruits, people, animals, or all of the above, it does come to an end.

Back to "we're all in this together", my opinion is that we really are. Rain or shine, happy or sad, rich or poor, we're all still human. We all need that lovely element called oxygen to fill our lungs with, and oh yeah, all of our feet get cold in the winter when we've lost that blue pair of socks. Oh, and most importantly, we all have emotions. Let's treat each other the way we want to be treated. :) Why kick your neighbor in the head just because they ran over your mailbox? If a big tornado comes and your basement is flooded, don't you want to feel better knowing you can count on your neighbor's for comfort and security? Think of the children! :P And really, doesn't it sound so much better to be on good terms with every one and every thing that you can? Nobody is saying everyone needs to be "BFFz" with that obnoxious boss you have at work, but is giving him a sincere "Hi, how are you today?" sound like too much to ask?