A few weeks ago I was walking by a boy and a man (yes one 20+ year old boy, one 20+ year old man; age plays no role here, and you will soon find out why) and briefly eavesdropped on their conversation. I haven't stopped thinking about it since. In the short time we walked together, this is what I heard:
Boy 1: 'I have dated so many hot girls, but I wouldn't marry any of them.'
Boy 2: '...Then why did you date them?'
Boy 1: 'Because they were hot!'
If I'd had a free hand I would've slapped him for every girl he had or had not dated. Surprising? No. Not really. Some even consider it amusing. I acknowledge, however, this is definitely not a mentality shared by all. But what does that unsurprising shared shallow mentality do, for guys and for girls?
It hurts.
Some people don't date because they don't meet the physical standard. Other people date because the extent of their human substance is now limited solely to their physical attributes.
It's time to see each other not for our physicality, but for the quality of our character. We wield so much power! The sheer influence of our acknowledgement, our observation or our interaction with others can have a profound and lasting impact on the rest of their lives; people's perceptions can and do change because of how we see them, because of how we treat them. It's time to treat each other as people again, not as commodities to be bought, traded, won, exploited, judged, undervalued or misunderstood. By this time in our lives I hope we understand the simple truth that a high-quality person deserves a high-quality companion. And it is ALWAYS worth waiting for!
Ladies and gentlemen, we don't have to 'settle.' And don't you dare ever stick around if someone feels they are settling for you. Because you are worth EVERYTHING, so you deserve someone that sees and treats you like their everything.
ShaNae Foster
Orem