Probably my favorite columnist, Robert Kirby, just wrote an article about religion, thinking for oneself, and birth control. It's a great read for anyone who has felt unduly pressured to blindly follow anyone else. My favorite line: "I prefer to focus on the fact that I was once insecure enough to let someone pressure me into doing something that was, in point of fact, none of his business - and to never let it happen again."
Eddie had a friend who made comments to another friend along the lines of "why aren't they having kids yet?!" We'd been married for less than a year.
ReplyDeleteI vowed after I heard that, to never pretend that I know better than someone when they "ought" to have children.
I also had a friend look at me with "you must be evil, you baby killer" because I said I was getting an IUD. (It wasn't quite that bad, but she was surprised, I think).
I think we all have an intense need to categorize people, and to do that we automatically have to judge them. It is hard to avoid doing it, unless one consciously works at it.
ReplyDeleteIn my program at school we are working a lot on emotional intelligence, and I have caught myself lately really looking down on people (outside of the program) who are lacking in that area.
I also think many feel that if they don't judge or condemn someone's action that they don't agree with, then somehow they're accepting it, which would be threatening.