Greetings Dear Reader,
When I was teaching information technology, I had a student plagiarize
the answers for his weekly study question by copying them directly from an internet
page to his work. He paid so little attention to what he copied that
he captured the comments on the answer as well as the answer.
The question was one of those that had to do with network
security and how to lock down the device.
This particular device happened to have a very clear and understandable
user manual. One of the comments was in
Serbian. Translated it simply said, “Why
not just read the manual?”
When confronted with the plagiarism, the student responded
that he was not sure how the comment was in his paper because he did not read
Serbian. He saw it all as a big joke. The rules required that we take up the issue
with the academic dean. In a single day, this student acquired a new label. He
was now considered a plagiarist by the faculty.
I saw the guilt and shame change him. Once he realized that no one saw him the same,
he became more withdrawn, less talkative.
I offered to help him get back his footing. He blamed me for his problem and would not
accept that help. The next semester he
did not return to school.
The label that he carried in that college community was one he
could not endure. He was guilty of the
act. It was the branding that did the
greater harm. It was the affixed label
that he saw whenever he was on campus.
We seem to all carry label makers with us and we assign tags
to each other without fully understanding the impact of that act. We talk about the labels we have assigned to people with each other. We develop stories about
those labels and speculate as to the character of the people we have labeled.
For good or for ill we assign these labels. We may even have good intentions. Still, like the Pharisees, we build a hedge
around who people are when we label them.
I am not talking about comments like “he is a great guy.” There is no problem with recognizing that
about a person. When we move on to “he
is a superior fly tier”, we set an expectation in the minds of those we
tell. I am not saying that this
information has no value in the proper context.
I am pondering that we may have become too free with our assignation of
labels.
I am going to ponder this for a few days as I try to hone my
conversation about others to understand how I use my label maker. You see I am sure I do not actively seek to
label anyone negatively. I am just as certain
that I apply positive labels when perhaps I should let others discover the
amazing qualities of an individual.
Please walk with me through this Dear Reader. We are in need of an honest look at how we use
our label makers. Your thoughts and
questions always benefit my journey.
Wishing you joy in the journey,
Aramis Thorn
Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every
writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a
homeowner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure
store.”
(͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)
Contacts for Aramis
Thorn:
#aramisthorn
Bookings: aramisthorn@aramisthorn.com
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