The world - categorized for your convenience!

There are several things that get me down. One is stereotyping.

I feel stereotyped all the time. It's always wrong and it's never the same box that I get put into. For instance, I have a little plaque in my kitchen that says, "Jesus Cares." When an acquaintance of mine saw it, I thought she would actually run out of the house. when I prodded her to discuss her reaction, she said, "I was afraid you were a Jesus freak!!" By which, she meant a born-again, bible-thumper who "witnesses" to everyone and is disappointed when you don't agree and find Jesus in their kitchen....well, I am not that.

Isn't there such a thing as a person who agrees with the teachings of Jesus and wants to live by them? Period? Well, the answer is yes and here I am.

Then I also get stereotyped into the drugged-out, flake category when people find out that I used to be in rock bands and had kind of nutty hair colors all through my 20's. . . They assume that I did a lot of drugs and was wild and that now I am a resentful person because I am "held down" by children, husband, etc.. . .well, that is not me. I love music and played in bands and travelled a lot performing. Sometimes I miss it, but it was also tiring.

Now I am officially stereotyped into the "soccer mom" thing. So, people seem sure that I do not have my own opinion and my contribution will be baked cookies and a smile and not much else. Well, I am not that either. (Although I do like to bake cookies - don't tell those people who are sure that I am a punk rocker.)

So why do we have to be in the boxes? Why can't we be three dimensional? with lots of interests.

This is leading to something associated with the Department of Peace...the word "Peace."

It is so fraught with stereotypes in our culture that you cannot get around it. People react to that word with ideas of passivity, being lame, rolling over, or worse, being anti-establishment, belligerent, an anarchist. The Vietnam war era stuck this idea of protests and pot-smoking hippies into the American psyche as equal with the word "peace." Well, it's wrong.

Official Definitions in the Dictionary:
PEACE. - noun, interjection, verb,
1. the normal, non-warring condition of a nation, group of nations, or the world.
2. a state of mutual harmony between people or groups, esp. in personal relations.
3. a state of tranquillity or serenity.

Does it say anywhere there," a state of letting others walk all over you?" or "the act of doing drugs and not taking baths?" No, it does not.

Get along with each other (and with yourself).
That's it.

How to avoid this stereotyped view of that word is the main problem with getting people hear and understand what the Department of Peace is all about. Maybe we should try to get it changed to the Department of Non-Violence? Department of Don't kill each other?

I don't know what other word would fit. I'm open to suggestions.