The November elections can’t come soon enough. Everywhere I look, people want to tell me who or what to vote for or against. Are there more signs these days, or am I of an age when I just notice them more?
What saddens me about these signs is how some divide. The issues (this season at least, in central Ohio) are hot buttons for many, and the signs remove any doubt you might have about how your neighbors, friends, and family members feel about them. Judgements come with these signs, sometimes by surprise. People fall into categories. And suddenly our community has been egg-cartoned into opinion-based sections.
When we lead with what divides us, common ground is hard to find. People bristle at these differences, sink deeper into grooves made by continually surrounding themselves with like-minded individuals. Community shrinks as divisive camps grow.
What if we led with things we can agree on? What if yards were littered with signs like “Ice Cream Rocks!” Or “Long Live Friday!” Or “Honk if you love coffee!” Would it be easier to connect with people who might differ from us in other ways if we knew we at least had some common interests, tastes, or preferences, or if we knew something about them that even if we didn’t agree, it wasn’t a “make-it-or-break-it” preference? Would we be able to consider a person as a dynamic individual with many facets? The fact that we don’t see eye to eye on all issues would be okay because a person is so much more than their thoughts about one idea.
When the elections are over and the yard signs finally rest elsewhere, it’s my prayer that we amnesia these divisions and unite as a community (it’s part of the word, after all), accepting ways we disagree because we have so much more common ground than these differences.
