How many times have you heard that saying? I’m sure the answer would be, “a lot.” Well, although this saying may sound a bit redundant and cliche, it really is more valuable than you might think. I learned that this statement is more relatable than I could have ever imagined. In fact, I feel it is more immeasurable nowadays than it has ever been before. The statement is not at all complicated to comprehend. It’s basically the antithesis of the belief that what you see is what you get.
For me personally, if I had to choose between that belief or this one, I’d go with this one, because I truly believe you need to give things a chance before coming to a final conclusion. When I say, “give things a chance,” I don’t mean give it a few seconds, a minute or even a day. Some things tend to take a bit longer to become accustomed to or appreciate. This was something that I was taught through Jacob’s videos. Before I became exposed to his content, I had a very low patience level, which is hypocritical of me because things move at their own pace and I am not exception.
Jacob taught me that we should not judge a country, race or religion solely by what we see in the media. Rather, he suggests we take it with a “pinch of salt,” and keep an open mind. This is where not judging a book by the cover comes into play. You see, Jacob just got done visiting countries in the Middle East. Countries that are well-known for being quote-on-quote, “dangerous.” These included Iraq and Syria. When those two countries are brought to somebody’s attention, usually the initial thought is, “war,” and it’s hard not have that thought after all of the coverage that these countries have received specifically due to war. I am not in any way trying to deny the existence of war in those countries, but what I am trying to do is to make you really think about that area in general. Is all of it covered in war? And when I mean all of it, I truly mean ALL OF IT.
It’s not a difficult question. The answer is, of course not. Yes there are areas you should be careful in, but don’t think for a second that it’s totally unsafe. Within those countries is goodness, and that goodness emanates from civilians, nature, culture and cuisines. The goodness outweighs the badness by a ton. Nobody wants their country to go through war destruction and hardships and people I feel need to keep that in the back of their minds that things are out of people’s control. What we see in the media more often than not I feel is desperation, desperation for a story and reaction. In other words, all of that footage we see of protests, bombs and tears is meant to get more investment from the audience.
Now don’t get me wrong, some of that footage is necessary to show because people need to be aware of the ongoings in different areas around the world and how people are being affected by them. I just feel that there’s a certain extent to how much should be shown and addressed, especially when it comes to politics. I feel sometimes that politics exacerbate situations or crises in certain countries. I feel that the political agenda contains a lot of ego-driven tactics that either become abused or miscalculated and as a result, more hardship and uproar occurs.
Through it all though, I think people need to be cognizant of the fact that every country is beautiful and unique. You can’t rely solely on what is shown in the media all of the time to shape your perception. Whether it’s Iraq, Iran, Syria or Venezuela, each country is a home to people and the people are really what defines a country. Remember, most people around the world are friendly and because of that, most countries in the world are friendly and beautiful. So just because you may see some graphic images or clips in the news, obviously keep those who are being affected in your thoughts and prayers because not everyone has a level playing field of life. People sometimes are given unfair and unspeakable situations that we just have no say in.
I’m aware this is a controversial topic but I do feel it needs to be addressed to a larger extent. We need to give every place a chance and we need to reach out to those who are struggling to make the world better. Nobody is able to do anything alone. We all need to look out for one another because we’re all family at the end of the day, I cannot stress that enough!
The World is Yours 