At The Table of Diversity

What if every bird in every sky in every country was a Robin? No exceptions. Boring. Or, every flower in every meadow a bluebonnet? We would get tired of blue. Or the only sandwich you could order at every sandwich shop was ham and cheese? Uniformity has its place, but diversity adds so much richness to life. In my adolescent days, sameness saved me in most social circles. Just blend in. Hang out with people who wore the same styles, spoke the same lingo, shared my likes and dislikes. But one day, post-adolescence, I tasted Hawaiian Pineapple ice cream instead of vanilla, and I had to rethink my life. The road to diversity can be bumpy at first, and a little scary, but there were benefits to knowing that the ice cream shop sold 31 different flavors.

This wonderful creation, presented in enormous diversity, ought to be a clue about living. Difference was designed into the fabric of life. On purpose. Intentionally. And so when I sit with a circle of friends, I fill my plate with diversity and most often I come away from the feast of friendship quite satisfied, or challenged, or wiser. I continue to be pleasantly amazed that Jesus regarded everyone as a potential friend, regardless of social position, personal wealth, or human accomplishments. So, maybe there is a benefit or two for us in looking at human diversity as a gift rather than a problem.

Dr. Suzanne Degges-White, in an article in Psychology Today (July 2020), makes the point. The benefits of diverse friendships, she writes are:

1. Exposure to valuable new perspectives on life; examples of how one transitions from one way of understanding things to a different way.
2. Chances to learn more about the world, which, by the way, is much bigger than our limited views.
3. Awareness that challenges and even confrontations are common to everyone.
4. Learning, growing, developing by asking questions of someone about life experience, cultural heritage, successes and failures.
5. Opportunities, not just to learn from someone else, but to share your own life, to mentor, and contribute to another person’s human growth.

Socially, culturally, politically, and spiritually, let’s move beyond “Me-My-Mine” to “We.” Maybe there are 35 flavors…some yet to be discovered.