It is too easy to jump to conclusions about something that you don't understand. Everyone does it at least internally because it is basically unavoidable the way humans are wired. It is also not necessarily a bad thing because the same logic is used to learn faster, but that is besides the point. That’s the basis of this story about me learning a lot about understanding and accepting that not every single person is going to interpret the world the same as you. For all of my formative years, I took science to be the final say on life's biggest questions. I never really learned or wanted to learn about religion because the preschool I went to was very progressive. When I moved from sunny L.A. to rural PA where I live now, There was a lot of learning to be done about the people here by second grade me. Most of them were religious which to me was uncharted territory. While I still do not practice a religion, back then a lot of what is taught in most monotheistic religions was complete nonsense to me. The microscope zoomed in and out of focus. I was still trying to spin the dial and have it present a clear image of my cell. I looked into the lens at this thing I could not see. It is amazing that something this small is what makes our bodies what they are. Because my parents are both scientists, I had seen this before and started naming the structures I already knew on my paper. This is fascinating I thought. I picked up my eyes and peered around the room. Not many other groups were finding success with the microscope. Some were trying to understand it and others seemed to have no interest in it. How could they not enjoy looking at these cells that compose everything in our body? 5 minutes later I found myself sitting at my desk and filling out some notes about the activity. As the teacher, an older lady who really enjoyed teaching us, went over something about the origins of the structures in the cells. I filled in the skeletal notes I was missing and kept staring blankly ahead directly into the cinder block wall. I was slightly tuned out, but I was still aware of the backing track of the classroom. It’s kinda dumb that I have to learn all of this again, but at least I got to mess around with numerous dials and settings on the microscope. That's when the guy next to me raised his hand and said, “Uh, why do we have to learn about any of this stuff if we already know that God created us and the Earth.” Huh? What? “You can’t be serious” I said. The speed at which his head turned threw his hair behind him. His eyes widened like I had just slapped him across the face. The look he wore told me that I had definitely done something wrong. “There’s no way some guy just invented the world!” I said aloofly. He looked like he had just seen a ghost. I dawned on me that what I had just said was probably insensitive. “You want me to believe that life just started? Just like that?” he replied as a little anger started creeping its way into his voice. I blockheadedly responded “Yeah it makes more sense than . . .” “Alexander!” the teacher exclaimed. “Sorry” I replied. I didn’t know that people had such strong connections to their religion like that I thought. When I read My Name is Margaret by Maya Angelou, I was reminded of this story because at the beginning of her story, an unnamed white woman incorrectly jumped to conclusions based on what Margaret's says about her grandparents owning the only general store. Even though her assumptions about Margaret were probably made on more than what Margaret’s grandparents did, she still did not have the full story and jumped to a conclusion which was ridiculous and even ludicrous and also disrespected Maya Angelou. Similarly, I jumped to conclusions about religion and disrespected my classmate. Now, my understanding of religion is better and I believe that whatever spirituality you choose to have is an essential part of the self.
1 Comment
Tiffany S.
2/4/2019 10:08:41 pm
Raj, this story was intriguing. I really enjoyed reading it because its always nice to hear different beliefs and outlooks on life. Also, I too believe a person's beliefs are important to their being and I respect their views even if I don't agree.
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“If you want to be a writer, you must do two things above all: Read a lot and write a lot”
- Stephen King AuthorHello. I'm Raj. Nice to meet you. Archives
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