Do you ever find yourself living in Opposite Land, the remote station on the outskirts of the civilization known as Popular Opinion?
Perhaps you’re an atheist surrounded by people who practice religion. Maybe you’re an anti-sports geek in a family of football fanatics. Or perchance you just don’t think bacon is the be-all-end-all of food (Quelle horreur!). Your only crime is having a different point of view and yet being on the opposing team, as it were, can sometimes lead to exile.
In such situations, how do you respond? Do you ever reconsider your stance? Study the issue again, and check yourself for missteps? Do you listen to the other side’s arguments? And after all of that, do you stand up for what you believe in, even if it means being banished?
Alternatively, do you change your opinion to go along with the crowd? Or pretend to adopt a belief for which you’ve long disagreed in order to avoid conflict? Or maybe you opt for silence during such discussions instead of openly dissenting?
We’ve all been ostracized to Opposite Land at one point or another. But in the end, when do you choose to take a stand?
–Photo by John Nettleship. Used with permission.
