Beliefs

I sat with my grandparents this weekend, 'arguing' about several things. I prefer the term debate, because I feel as if arguing is hostile while debate is not. I must say, they dislike it, but I find it to be a lovely way to spend my weekend- as long as they're not attacking me for my opinions. (-mumbles about being called a radical and how I'm far from the very definition of a radical-)

On to the point.

She said something, that has truly gotten both my nerves grinding because she felt this way about me, and has gotten me thinking about somethings. She told me that I have to believe in something, that everyone has to have something to believe in for their drive. She also told me that I can't believe in everything, which is something that it is far from the truth of what I do. I am quite sad that she had such a perception about me, but she had been drinking at the time.

Though...she did have a point. What is a human being that doesn't believe in...something? Now, keep in mind- I'm not meaning solely religiously. I'm meaning it in every sense of the word. What would a human being be if they didn't believe in science, if they didn't believe in other people, if they didn't believe in animals? What would be their driving force in this world? Could they even be considered a person with how much they'd be doubting in everything around them? Surely, they wouldn't go on to do much in their life.

Personally, I have a lot of causes and other things that I believe in. I believe in keeping our constitutional right to guns, I believe in gay marriage, I believe in helping those that are less fortunate than me, and I do have a religion. There are many things that I don't believe in, I don't believe in abortion- but I do believe in the woman's right to choose. I don't believe in pointless killing, nor do I believe in mind altering substances- but I do not condemn their use as long as it's legal. I don't believe that there is a single right way to do anything, but rather many different ways.

The point of stating all of that is, I know what I believe in and what I don't. This might not be obvious to her, and this might not be obvious to anyone. I try my best to look on, not only both, but all sides of what is going on. In the things I say, it might seem as if I'm taking all the sides and can't choose my own side, but I promise you- I know which side that I fall in. Grant it, in some situations, I will fall in the middle. I consider myself a Moderate Independent when it comes to politics, but I know that an Independent candidate will likely never take office. The result? I know that once I can vote, I will have to vote for Republican or Democrat if I want my vote to really do anything other than sit in the 'other' category. So, I will likely swing my votes when I do go to vote.

This has gotten me thinking about what I believe in, and to really define which side of the line that I stand on. Perhaps I should define the line just a bit more- especially for those who do not see life like I see it. However, I wanted to create this post not to reflect on what I believe in but rather to ask a question. That question is this:

What do you believe in?

As I stated earlier, this doesn't have to be religious. This could very simply be your standpoint on issues in the world today, your moral compass and such.

Now, I might be a radical- I don't feel like I am but I'm positive I am to others that I would no doubt consider a radical myself, but I do know one thing that I stand for. One thing that I believe in, completely and utterly. People, no matter their race, sex, gender, sexual orientation, age, ect, should all be viewed not for those things, but as people. As people, their should be given the same opportunity, but only if they're willing to put the work required in for it. Sadly? I feel like we're still a ways off from that belief of mine, as a society here in America.