Gratitude 8/20/07

A little over three years ago, when I started working at Ballys, there was another trainer, Carl, with whom I got into several long discussions about religion and politics. We were divided along party lines, Democrat vs. Republican. But one thing that made the discussions -- or arguments, to some -- useful was that we listened to each other with open minds. We didn't agree, but we listened.

Over the last three years, we no longer identify with those narrow definitions. We both are disillusions with politics, but what we have discovered is that we have much more in common than not.

Everywhere I look in this culture, I see people divided -- by politics, by religion, by race, by income, by any number of things that are meaningless in the larger scheme of things.



The thing that bothers me about all these divisions is that they are superficial. We are not defined by these things, but the media convinces us that we are. In the end, and most importantly, we are all human beings.

Rather than focus on the things that divide us, we should focus on the things that we have in common -- a desire to be happy, to be loved, to have reliable income, to feel safe, and so on.

Today I am grateful for each and every person who looks beyond our differences to see the common ground we all share. These are divisive times, so we need to find that which unites us. I am grateful for all the things that we have in common -- for our common humanity.

What are you grateful for today?

Tags: gratitude, culture, Depeche Mode, People Are People, common ground