The Stranger - Journal #3: Personal Philosophy

Journal Prompt #3:

You will demonstrate your understanding of the importance of one's world view by scrutinizing your thoughts on how the world works and indentifying guiding principles for your own philosophy.

establishes and introduces your philosophy.

 

Response:

"Equalism"/Equality

(Egalitarianism is the closest to an actual belief.)

Throughout my life I have seen the world in various ways. As a child I was raised in a Catholic family, so Theism was a big part of my life up until my teenage years. After my mother's passing, my world was flipped upside down and I began to question what I once knew. There was much more to the world than the safety of Tigard I had only known. I then saw not only the problems that faced my community, but the entire world. I determined the largest issue is the lack of equality. As an United States' citizen, I value individual rights over most everything else. I strongly believe that every individual has the right to live their life the way they please, regardless of religion, gender, sexual orientation, education, social/financial statuses, physical/mental disabilities, etc. Every person is human and should not be treated as a lesser just because they are different. Equality is the driving belief in my everyday life.

Guiding principles:

• Talk to anyone and everyone; include those who seem to be left out of a group.
• Get to know a person through similar interests. There is always at least one thing people can relate to, it just takes a genuine attempt to find it.
• Do not make assumptions or judge people without getting to know them. Stay optimistic when meeting new people.
• Work together on issues/projects to improve the community. Most people would enjoy a better world, but it does not happen by oneself.
• Spread the word on equality. Take part in in diversity days, celebratory months, and times of awareness. How many people knew that March 8th was International Women's Day?
• Be a positive person and make something of oneself. I admit that I am not always positive, but I can accomplish more and express my individuality when I am. :]
• Somewhat cliche, but be responsible for ones actions. Every individual is in charge of themselves, meaning that if they make a hurtful comment about another it often hurts the individual as well.
• Have an open mind. Creative thinking can only happen when someone is willing to open up and think differently. It is the same with people. If prejudices overwhelm someone, they are more likely to stick with their own way of thinking instead of exploring the opportunities of others out there.
• Take pride in oneself. If one does not feel like an important individual, they will not want to be one. To help out others, one must be confident in their own abilities and feel comfortable knowing that they are just as important as everyone else.
• A cliche, but it is the most important: respect one another. It has been touched on in the other principles, but it needs to be made clear. Everyday I go through life thinking about not only what will benefit me, but what I can do for others through my individual actions. A courtesy word someone whom one does not normally talk to can open up a path for a worldly connection. Every action, every word matters.