Say hi.

I’ve started writing this post probably a good ten times in the past month or so. I’ve figured it’s time to post again. But I can’t seem to find words to share.

I’m learning a lot. I’m going through a lot. My heart breaks every day for something different. And i feel zero need to expand any further on those at the moment.

Blogs are weird, ya know? Its like “Let me tell all the things and all the stories to all the strangers because that’s cool and that’ll change things.” or “Let me tell you all about my life when only a fraction of you actually care.” But we do it anyway. I’m doing it right now.

I find it extremely impersonal. I’d rather talk to you face-to-face. So, here is my official request for you to un-follow my blog (if you cared to read it regularly in the first place) and say hi to me in real life. Because I’m a human who, more than most things, needs real relationship and real human interaction. And the last thing I need is someone to read about me on the screen of their device-of-choice. The last thing I want is to be idealized rather than to be real.

The last thing any minority, refugee, oppressed person of any kind, or any human needs is a long post defending them (with anger and hatred for those angry and hating) on the internet - what they really need is for you to go take time (your most valuable asset) to get to know them and love them in real life. they need love in real life, not a show of it on the intangible web.

Love loves because it loves, not because it wants people to know it loves.

Put down your screen and go say hi to someone you’ve never met before, ok? But REALLY say hi to them. And ask them with a genuine curiosity when you say “how has your day been?” You’d be amazed at the beauty that comes from people who are loved (even slightly and simply), especially when it comes from a stranger with no obligation, only desire, to talk to them.

Go make someones eyes light up. Give someone hope. Be a human who has real life interactions. Shake a hand. Give a high-five.

Smile at the policeman as he hands you a speeding ticket. Ask the lady at the DMV how her day is and care about it. Tell a little girl she’s a princess. Buy the guy on the street corner a sandwich and some clean underwear. Ask your co-worker their life story, or just what their favorite color is. Learn a new language, go across the world to the place it’s spoken, and tell someone something special about who they are. I dare you to take one step outside of yourself today to learn something new about someone else and to cherish it.

Go talk to someone and not worry about the next obligation. Treat everyone you meet like they are the most important person in the world (I read that somewhere but I can't remember where - just fyi). Because they are. Because Jesus didn’t just die for everyone, he died for every individual one of us. So every person is the most important, because every single one is worth dying for.

Be present.

Smile.

Say hi.