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Let People Have Their Thing
Just because it is not your thing, that doesn’t lessen its value.
Everyone enjoys different things. There are activities, places, and people that one person likes but another may not.
This is important to be mindful of, because it is far too easy to make fun of, berate, and belittle this thing or that when it is not a shared thing.
Welcome to autumn, the season of everything pumpkin spice, for example. Just walking into my local grocery store, the entire entry area is many variations of pumpkin spice flavored items, from chips to granola bars to beverages to reinventions of various classics.
It’s pretty impressive and rather crazy. Personally, I’d really prefer if this focus turned to apple cinnamon over pumpkin spice. But, to each their own.
That’s my take on it. But there are a lot of people who will go out of their way to make fun of the obsession some have with all things pumpkin spice. It may seem trite to say “let people enjoy things” but then it is still necessary.
Why? Because good-natured ribbing and laughs can far-too-easily turn into personal attacks. What’s more, recipients of this sort of teasing (and frankly, in some instances, abuse) may already suffer from self-esteem and confidence issues. Creating a non-issue…