And the label goes to....

Geek. Stoner. Prep. Popular. Nerd. Creepers. Loners.
Those are just some of the labels I hear in my house. Daily. One child, whose name they never have, is constantly labeling people. I think it comes from her own insecurities. She struggles with her identity. When she has it going on, BOY does she sparkle! However, she rarely has "it" going on. She hides. Remember those walls I've been shouting down? Well, she has tall, thick walls going on. Almost a dome.
We've all done it. Labeled someone. Especially in High School. Those tables where people sit. The girls that are on the "outside" who look at the popular girls and wish they could be just like them. The boys who wish the girls would even glance their way. The kids who pretend like it's ok they sit alone, who act like they have something better to do. What teens don't realize is that every single one of them is scared. Alone inside. The most popular of kids could be the one that is the saddest. It's easy to assume that because it appears like they have everything going on, they have a perfect life. But that is hardly ever true.
Sometimes, that travels into adulthood. As adults, we still label. But now we're not just labeling our peers, we're labeling the kids our teens hang with. We make judgments by how they look, if their pierced, tatooed or even have colored hair. That doesn't so much bother me....if you've met me, you know why.
I try to stop the labeling when it happens. Try to tell the child whose name they never have that you can't put people into boxes. They don't always fit, and she may be hurting someone. I know that's not her intention. While she's labeled other, she's also labeled herself. AND limited herself. She's put herself in a box, or dome, and sheltered herself from experiences that could and will change and shape her life. When you label, sometimes in your heart, those people stay that label. And you don't really know them. I've been labeled. In high school, I was alone. I never fit. Always pretending to read, pretending I didn't care. I did, though. I wanted to be invited places, wanted to giggle and laugh with the girls and have the popular boys like me. Didn't happen. Later I was labeled again. I shook that label off though. Forgiven...east from the west.....
We have to change our mindset. Stop thinking the outside equals the inside. Realize that the hearts of those around us are the same as our own....fearful, anxious and trepiditious. If we open our boxes, we let the Sonshine in. And when the Son shines, amazing things happen.

PS....the girl whose name they never have has actually expanded her box quite a bit. I have no doubt that before long, her dome will have disappeared and she will have the life the Son intends.