[Faith-talk] Five Lessons To Think About On How To Treat People

[Paul Smith]

Today we will begin a series of five very short articles on how to 
treat people.  Initially I was going to put them all together in one 
post, but on reflection I decided to separate them.  So, other than the 
days for the weekly Bible trivia game poem and the Baffling Bible 
Questions Answered column, you will get these five articles.

1:  First Important lesson, cleaning lady.

During my second month of college, our professor gave us a pop quiz.  I 
was a conscientious student and had breezed through the questions, 
until I read the last one:  "What is the first name of the woman who 
cleans the school?" Surely this was some kind of joke.  I had seen the 
cleaning woman several times.  She was tall, dark-haired and in her 
50's, but how would I know her name? I handed in my paper, leaving the 
last question blank.

Just before class ended, one student asked if the last question would 
count toward our quiz grade.  "Absolutely," said the professor.  "In 
your careers, you will meet many people.  All are significant.  They 
deserve your attention and care, even if all you do is smile and say 
hello." I've never forgotten that lesson.  I also learned her name was Dorothy.

And there you have the first of the five lessons on how to treat 
people.  Unless some of us have enough vision to be able to recognize a 
particular person by his/her facial features, the clothes they wear, 
whether perhaps they are fat, thin, dark or light-skinned, the only way 
we blind can recognize a particular person is by their accent or 
dialect when they speak.  It's interesting that I graduated from high 
school in 1966 and, even though there has been the passing of years, I 
can still recognize my schoolmate Duncan, even though he has made his 
residence in Texas for quite some time now.  Just wonder if the same 
could be said of my other graduating classmates from the Maryland 
School for the Blind?

Anyway I hope that some, if not all, of you enjoyed reading the first 
of these five lesson articles.  Don't forget that tomorrow in this 
space, Lord willing, will be the weekly Bible trivia game poem for you. 
Until then may the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob just keep us safe, 
individually and collectively, in these last days in which we live.  
Your Christian friend and brother, Paul