We had a going away party for someone from work who is moving to Texas. It was great to see everyone since I so seldom go into the office now that I work from home.
What was especially great was one of my co-workers thanked me for writing the blog post linked below, R-E-S-P-E-C-T. The post arose out of a discussion at work about how uncomfortable the homeless can make you feel. Since I’m a writer, not a talker, I wasn’t really able to put into words what I was trying to make clear, so I poured my thoughts into my blog.
At the party, my coworker said her whole attitude has changed since she read it. Now when she sees a homeless person at a stoplight with a sign, she smiles at them and even rolls down her window to talk sometimes. When she told one person she had no change to pass on, she was told her smile was worth more than money.
Thank you, Kelly, for sharing with me. That’s why I wrote the post, why I wrote Painted Black, to try to change minds and attitudes. Even if you are the only one I affected, I feel that I’ve been successful.
I’ve been raised to believe that most people are good. That if you treat them with respect, they’ll treat you with respect. Not everyone, not always–because people are flawed and some people, quite frankly, are assholes.
Debra R. Borys 