Mean People, November 17 Daily Reflection

Over peanut butter and jelly Jake asked me “Are there really mean people?”  To which I responded, “No, they are people who have been hurt, they act mean so they do not get close enough to be hurt again.”  What a difficult concept to grasp.  As a four year old life is black and white bad guys vs. good guys.  It takes a few years before the colors start to blend and the gray begins to show through.

It is much easier in life to say that person is mean and treat them unkindly or ignore them all together.  However, we are adults and as such we should think on a deeper level.  We are all God’s children each of us created by God so each of us has the love of God within.  I do not believe God created evil.  I believe He gave us free will and within that freedom we have chosen poorly all too often and the result is evil.

 Can a baby be mean?  Of course not!  The environment they are raised within produces the behavior for the most part.  It is outside influences that lead one down the path of meaness.  If the child had not been neglected, abused, hurt, treated with little respect or punished unjustly then I think the child could not learn cruelty.  It must be taught. 

We can also teach kindness, love, respect, compassion and empathy.  Such behavior can lead a person to become kind.  In our own adult lives we see people with deep seated issues that should be cared for.

The next time someone does something unkind to you try to look beneath the surface because we are all God’s children and all deserve His kindness and love from others.  After all depriving that person of love is probably what made them mean.