Let’s Be Better Humans
Author: Angela CraigOne of the shop’s owners, Vi, invited me to pick a color and have a seat at the pedicure station. Routine start. I sat down in the pedicure chair and was greeted by a new technician.
She was kind and sweet in spirit. She also had dramatic burns on every part of her body I could see with the exception of her toes. She had masterfully painted on her lips and eye brows to give her face the definition that was lost in the trauma. My heart hurt for the unknown pain she must have been through. I wondered: How did this happen? I thought it must be a miracle she is even alive.
After my pedicure, I transferred to the manicure table where the other shop owner, Flower, sat. I told her how much I enjoyed meeting Tien, the new technician, and asked if Tien was the cousin she had mentioned in the past who helped in the shop a few days a week.
Flower told me Tien was her neighbor and had recently moved to the United States from Vietnam. Leaning forward, Flower thanked me for being so kind to Tien. She went on to tell me that the last customer asked for a different technician when she saw Tien’s burnt face.
She did WHAT?
She asked for a different technician in front of Tien.
Then Flower told me Tien’s story. Tien was a movie star in Vietnam. Unfortunately, her abusive and jealous husband couldn’t take the attention Tien received so he hired someone to pour acid on her face. Tien lost sight in one eye and has no left ear, in addition to the visual burns you can see.
Her husband received 14 years in prison. Tien came to the states to start a new life, but was only allowed to bring one of her two children. Heart wrenching!
My first response after hearing this story: Oh, you let me at that woman who said she wanted a different technician. I have never punched anyone in the face before, but there could always be a first time! Did this woman forget that Tien was a human being? Did she forget that Tien was made in the image of God? Did she forget that Tien could SEE, HEAR and FEEL the rejection?
When I was done with my mental rant, I had to ask God WHY anyone would treat Tien this way.
What drove this woman to treat Tien without dignity or respect simply because Tien looked different than her?
The answer: FEAR.
We fear what we don’t understand. We fear what we can’t explain. We fear the person who is different than us. It challenges our self-identity. It challenges our sense of security.
So we retreat or we judge to make ourselves feel safer.
Have we forgotten what it means to be human?
As a Christian, I can’t give in to my human nature to deny others human dignity for my own self-preservation. It is selfish.
Selfish people die selfish and did I mention – ALONE.
The Bible is clear about what my response should be. Anything different is simply wrong.
Jesus challenges us to see the face of Christ in the faces of those that are different than us: “I was hungry, and you gave me food. I was thirsty, and you gave me something to drink. I was alone and away from home, and you invited me into your house. I was without clothes, and you gave me something to wear. I was sick, and you cared for me. I was in prison, and you visited me” (Matthew 25:35-37 NCV).
- People look at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.1 Samuel 16:7 (NIV)
- 1 John 3:18 (AMP) teaches, “Little children (believers, dear ones), let us not love [merely in theory] with word or with tongue [giving lip service to compassion], but in action and in truth [in practice and in sincerity, because practical acts of love are more than words].”
Let’s be better humans and change the world by giving dignity and respect to every person we meet.