All about Respect

Last night my family and I had to opportunity to go to my youngest sisters 8^th grade choir concert, they sang everything from old folk songs to new age pop numbers, with cute choreography to go along with each piece. One number in particular left a lasting impression on me, at the beginning of the performance four girls came to stand at the front of the stage and one by one listed countless things they wished they could change about themselves, “I wish I were funnier, I wish I were as pretty as the popular girls, I wish I wasn’t so awkward, I wish my nose was smaller, I wish I was skinnier, I wish I was taller…” after 10 or so of these statements the girls stepped back to join the choir and sang a newer song by Colbie Calliat entitled “Try”, these are the lyrics and a link to the video -

Put your make up on
Get your nails done
Curl your hair
Run the extra mile
Keep it slim
So they like you. Do they like you?

Get your sexy on
Don't be shy, girl
Take it off
This is what you want, to belong
So they like you. Do you like you?

You don't have to try so hard
You don't have to give it all away
You just have to get up, get up, get up, get up
You don't have to change a single thing

You don't have to try, try, try, try
You don't have to try, try, try, try
You don't have to try, try, try, try
You don't have to try
You don't have to try

Get your shopping on,
At the mall,
Max your credit cards
You don't have to choose,
Buy it all
So they like you. Do they like you?

Wait a second,
Why should you care, what they think of you
When you're all alone, by yourself
Do you like you? Do you like you?

Chorus X2

Take your make up off
Let your hair down
Take a breath
Look into the mirror, at yourself
Don't you like you?
Cause I like you.

At the end of each verse the girls would come to the front and list of another 10 things they didn’t like about themselves, but at the end each girl had 2-3 empowering statements, things they DID like about themselves, “I love my family, I like that I get good grades, I like my friends, I love my voice, I’m good at basketball..” then in unison the whole group announces, “I AM STRONG, I AM ENOUGH!” I had goosebumps all up and down my body and was honestly so moved that I was emotional. In all the years I’ve been going to choir concerts (there’s seven kids in my family and I’m in the middle so I’ve been to A LOT), I’ve never heard a more relevant song for a group of 8^th grade girls.

Society and culture dictate much of what we think of ourselves and what is deemed “appropriate”. Right now there is a huge push for people to be accepting of alternative lifestyles, primarily gay marriage. In this movement it has suddenly become unacceptable for me to be myself, to think and feel and have my own opinion about what a family is and God’s role is in that union. In order to love those who are pro-gay marriage-- those people who just want to be accepted for who they are and how they feel-- I must deny my beliefs and sacrifice myself in the process, because being me is no longer “appropriate”. While in the fight to make gay marriage the norm, it is ostracizing those of us who still believe that marriage is between a man and a woman. In order to keep equal rights we must tolerate the beliefs and feelings of everyone, that includes those who do not believe in supporting same sex marriage.

I have a thorough belief that we were sent to this earth to love and care for one another, but it seems to me that these days we spend more time tearing each other down rather and building each other up. There has to be a mutual respect for those that believe different from you, whether you support gay marriage or traditional marriage, we are all still children of a loving Heavenly Father, and our goal is to ultimately make it back to Him...hopefully with the rest of our brothers and sisters here on earth.