So 2017 has had a rocky start in the US. I am truly disturbed by all of the noise that is happening and the division of people. I was listening to Bobby Bones the other day and he described scrolling through Facebook like “going to the dentist”. I could not agree more.

All of it bothers me. Let’s start off by saying I could care less if you are Republican or Democrat. I could care less if you are a man or a woman. I could care less if you are gay or straight. I could care less if you are white, black, Asian, Native American, Pacific Islander or any other ethnicity.

We are all people.

We are all God’s people.

We are getting nasty with one another. We are getting too vocal. I am witnessing Facebook rants and downright ugly arguments among “friends” on their differing political views. Angry arguments posted for hundreds of their friends to see.  What happened to the concept “agree to disagree?” Or respecting that each individual is entitled to their view? Why make it a nasty public display? What is gained from that? The person with the opposing political view certainly isn’t likely to change their convictions anyhow.

I live in one of the fastest growing cities in the United States – Austin, Texas. There are 157 people moving here every day (that may change by the time you read this). The traffic is ridiculous and the housing market is absolutely out of control. When I grew up here, it was a small town. People waved, people smiled, and people were generally nice to one another.

Not anymore.

Everyone seems to be in a hurry. Everyone is in a hurry to get to their next appointment, their next meeting, the next thing on their “to-do list”.  Cutting other cars off in traffic, not allowing cars to merge and using that lovely middle finger to show our displeasure. We are all rushing through life and really not slowing down at all. It is sad. Really sad.

We are forgetting the golden rule “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”

We all need to take a big breath.

Why are we treating each other so harshly? Why are we pointing out other people’s flaws when we have our very own flaws that we are ignoring?

I encourage you to think about the big picture here. We are all people. We all deserve respect. We all deserve kindness.

So the next time you are frustrated in traffic, lay off the horn. The next time you are feeling passionate about politics, please post a picture of your dog or your kids instead.

Let’s be kind to one another. Let’s be humble and kind.

Thanks!