RESPECT (I)

R-E-S-P-E-C-T.
RESPECT!!!!
That’s it. Every single relationship we have with each other has to do with that
very word. Look at the person next to you. Do you respect him or her? How much do you respect that person? Have you ever shown your respect? How about those you don’t necessarily like? Do you show respect to them, or… would you rather cast them into the scorching fire? The respect we hold for each other determines how well we, as human beings, work together. The entire Asheville School system, under which we all live, functions on the concept of respect. We must respect each other’s property and privacy through the honor code. We respect our teachers’ and peers’ knowledge, otherwise we would not go to class or ask questions of each other. The respect that we learn at Asheville School transfers into the world beyond our small community. Matthew 22:39 tells us that the second greatest commandment is that “you shall love your neighbor as yourself” (Bible). Now be real. That definitely does not mean that you must go to every person and say, “I love you.” Instead, love comes in the form of respect. Allow me to elaborate.

What does respect mean? Take that passage from 1st Corinthians again, and insert respect instead of love: “[Respect] is patient; [respect] is kind; [respect] is not envious or boastful or arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice in wrongdoing, but rejoices in the truth. It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. [Respect] never ends” (Bible).

This context suggests that respect is a form of human love. By showing our respect toward others, we develop a sense of cohesiveness and unity. Respect for one another also boosts morale and creates an air of happiness. In simpler terms, it makes people feel good. When someone greets you every day or stands at the door holding it open just a little longer for you, it’s out of respect. Mr. Bonner, in his introduction to English V, told us that we, as human beings, are genetically approximately 99% the same. Yes, we have our differences in experiences, giving us different opinions. However, we experience the same problems in life, whether it’s trying to sum up the courage to ask a girl out (or if you are that girl, saying, “Yes”) or always trying to master that concept in math, or, in my case, English. We must respect one another so that there is not a constant clash among ourselves either in the form of argument or of quiet resentments.



NOTE: This was written by a quite close friend of mine, Nathan Doane, and I didn't ask for permission to post it (yet)... but every single flattery should be delivered to him...

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