Labels by Sharon Heagy

            The other day someone labelled me as a certain kind of person. It wasn’t a bad label but it made me feel as though they had just grabbed a stamp, filled it with ink and fixed an identifiable mark on my forehead. Thock! “File this gal on the shelf with all the others just like her!” 

            Labels can be a boon and a bane. When I shop for groceries, I often examine the labels to see if a product is ok for my husband to eat. Label reading seems to be on the increase these days. Groups of shoppers standing in the aisles, fingers scrolling down the ingredient list and nutrition facts to see if there is something inside that could harm them because they have certain health issues or because they are following the latest fad diet. 

            Labels are great for washing clothes to prevent damage or to find out what you did wrong when damage occurs. “Oh, cold water only and hang to dry,” as you pull a shirt out of the dryer that will now only fit a doll.

            Labels are handy for directions on how to assemble or for proportions for mixing. They are useful as warnings for harmful things. “Do not breathe, ingest, touch or get it in your eyes. Warning! Warning!”

            And what about the “Do not remove” labels that many of us still have hanging off of mattresses, furniture and other sundry items. Are we afraid to remove them in case the label police storm down the door and throw us in label jail? Labels, labels everywhere.

            But when it comes to people maybe we could use less labelling and more ‘getting to know you.’ Type A, B, C, D have now been joined by 16 other subcategories of personality traits, each with their own set of initials. And, yeah, maybe these ‘tests’ and attributes could be a handy tool in some circles, but I still think the best way to know people is to sit down and have a ‘cuppa’ with a plate of cookies. (The cookies are only negotiable if there happens to be cake instead.)

            Sitting in a food court gazing out over the populous as they pass reveals the vast creativity of God. There are more differences and nuances in looks, laughs and mannerisms. A person is the sum of many parts, not a set of labels. The more intimately you know somebody, the deeper the layers you will find. You may find you have to use the entire alphabet in order to describe just one person.

            Perhaps we need to keep this in mind when developing characters for our stories so the folks we write about are less cookie cutter and more multifaceted diamonds of God’s creation. 

Providing labels also limits God and the Holy Spirit’s power to equip someone beyond their skills and personality. Anything is possible with God so let’s let our characters out of the boxes we so conveniently create for them. Surprise!

            As for me, I am trying not to let my judgements and preconceived ideas about how and why people behave the way they do, limit my getting to know them. Instead, I am peeling off the labels and am trying to look a little deeper. To give a little grace and be blessed to meet a fellow traveller, knit together by His hand. Exploring and trying to understand who God created them to be as I unwrap the gift that they are to the world. 

            Something to think about, I hope, at least it is for me. 

            Meanwhile, I wish each and every member of my Inscribe family a very Merry Christmas, filled with the peace and joy that comes from knowing Him. Gloria in Excelsis Deo!