Out of my way!

I was thinking yesterday about how important it is to humans to be important.

Bear with me while we figure this out.

I want to be respected. I had a dream last night that I was at church and I was told that I had to preach. Keep in mind: I have never preached in my life and the thought nearly knocks me off the bed. Back to the dream- I was getting completely incensed when people weren't paying attention to me. They were talking to one another and even getting up to walk around the room. I resorted to, yes, hollering at them. It was absolutely insane.

Firstly, I would never preach. (Watch this come back to bite me in ten years.) Secondly, I am not the hollering type. I mean, I have done it. I'm a redhead. But I want to be known as gentle and not for beating other people about the head with my beliefs! Certainly, I don't want to be a doormat and I want to be bold, but bold and obnoxious do not have to co-exist.

We have to matter. It's in our makeup. It never fails to amuse me how this generation acts completely ambivalent about this and yet it is glaringly obvious. Teenagers and twenty-somethings cheer on those who decide to buck the trends to be an outsider and be different. They say, "I don't care what anyone thinks." But then they blog and they join social networking sites and proudly display comments and wall posts. Really, the dance card is still utilized- it is just now masquerading in the form of a text message. Yet point this fact out to one of these compulsive users, and you are met with a blank stare, then defiance at the idea that they actually NEED another human being.

That's a sermon right there. But remember, I don't preach.

Everyone wants to be an important entity. If not, you won't survive. It starts out with being who has the best lunchbox in elementary school, then moves on to who has the best high heels (I'm battling it out for this one!). Eventually, it's who publishes the #1 NYT Bestseller...then the sequels. Who creates the next must-have product, then continues to renew the patent. We view it as a competition, but it really seems that there's room for everyone. What is lacking? Creativity.

We feel that we have to step on one another to climb to the top. Wouldn't it be a novel idea if we worked together to help everyone find their own importance? But no. We're too busy tromping our way up, up, up.

Hey, at least the tromping is happening in fabulous heels, am I right?