This week's topic is about having beliefs that don't really agree with those of people around you. Now, I'm typically not one to get into long arguments and/or debates with my friends or family (I avoid any sort of conflict like the plague, to be honest), but I do have my own slightly-controversial beliefs.
One of them is my stance on homosexuality, which doesn't exactly coincide with that of my parents'. Sure, I might just disagree with two people, but in my opinion, consciously choosing to believe in something that your parents don't is much more scary than choosing to believe in something that other people around you don't. They've been there literally from my birth, and they're pretty much the #1 influences in my life. It's easy to just take on the opinions of your parents; after all, you've always believed that Mommy and Daddy were never wrong. But taking that terrifying step away from the influence of your guardians is a pretty big step towards adulthood.
I grew up in a very Catholic family, which meant that my parents weren't exactly advocates for LGBTQ rights. It's not like they ran around screaming, "I HATE GAYS!" or something; they always taught me to love everyone, no matter what sexuality they were. It's just that they didn't advocate for it. And I kind of just accepted it.
For the past couple years, I've struggled with coming to terms with my own personal beliefs about homosexuality. It used to be easy to just say, "Yeah, I'm not really a supporter of gay marriage" when you weren't really exposed to it. But as I've gotten older, I've had friends who were gay or seen it on television and the news. And I've begun to realize that I'm kind of okay with that. After all, love is just that -- love. It doesn't affect anyone else, and it's a personal choice.
I don't exactly parade around my beliefs or anything, but I'm willing to share them if anyone asks. My parents are okay with them too; we like to have little debates at dinnertime about the topic (they usually consist of my dad cracking bad puns, but whatever). I'd like to think that I might even be changing their positions on the topic, but in reality, I won't be too upset if they don't change their minds. Beliefs, just like sexuality, are personal things, and as long as people aren't acting in detrimental ways based on them, I'll just agree to disagree.
One of them is my stance on homosexuality, which doesn't exactly coincide with that of my parents'. Sure, I might just disagree with two people, but in my opinion, consciously choosing to believe in something that your parents don't is much more scary than choosing to believe in something that other people around you don't. They've been there literally from my birth, and they're pretty much the #1 influences in my life. It's easy to just take on the opinions of your parents; after all, you've always believed that Mommy and Daddy were never wrong. But taking that terrifying step away from the influence of your guardians is a pretty big step towards adulthood.
I grew up in a very Catholic family, which meant that my parents weren't exactly advocates for LGBTQ rights. It's not like they ran around screaming, "I HATE GAYS!" or something; they always taught me to love everyone, no matter what sexuality they were. It's just that they didn't advocate for it. And I kind of just accepted it.
For the past couple years, I've struggled with coming to terms with my own personal beliefs about homosexuality. It used to be easy to just say, "Yeah, I'm not really a supporter of gay marriage" when you weren't really exposed to it. But as I've gotten older, I've had friends who were gay or seen it on television and the news. And I've begun to realize that I'm kind of okay with that. After all, love is just that -- love. It doesn't affect anyone else, and it's a personal choice.
I don't exactly parade around my beliefs or anything, but I'm willing to share them if anyone asks. My parents are okay with them too; we like to have little debates at dinnertime about the topic (they usually consist of my dad cracking bad puns, but whatever). I'd like to think that I might even be changing their positions on the topic, but in reality, I won't be too upset if they don't change their minds. Beliefs, just like sexuality, are personal things, and as long as people aren't acting in detrimental ways based on them, I'll just agree to disagree.