Are they a number or a name

Is he a number or a name? Is she a number or a name? Are they a number or a name? Have you ever just taken the time to think about how people treat others? Have you ever take the time to think about how you treat others? Today, I was reminded to always keep in my mind what I think and how I treat others.

As a  child, I aspired to president, governor, an attorney, and a business owner among many different occupations. Rightfully, the occupations I just listed often come with a great deal of respect and reverence. Yet, sometimes we forget other occupations and the people who fill them. People like the garbage man, the truck driver, the farmer, the plumber, and the janitor often go unnoticed and un-admired.

I've been around all classes of society. I've been at dinners attended by dignitaries like a former president. I've been in the company of high ranking state politicians. I've been in the presence of people of high acclaim. On the other hand, I've been in the presence of the garbage man, the janitor, the truck driver, and the farmer.
Personally, if I had my choosing, I choose to spend the rest of my life in the company of the latter group.

You see, sometimes, we let accomplishments go to our head. I have trouble with that sometime. However, I believe God has humbled me lately and helped to realize the true value of all people from the president to the plumber.

Almost nothing in this world bothers me more than a person who thinks more highly of himself than he ought. When I look around in my own life, it's not the governors, or the senators, or the dignitaries that have meant the most in my life. No, it's the common man.

I have always been drawn to people who may possess little earthly possessions but an abundance of heaven's greatest blessings. For these people, are the ones that you can depend on to make this life worth living.These are the people who have compassion and pity for others but pride and respect for their own self.

Sadly though, the janitors and the garbage workers and the plumbers are sometimes just a number to some people. They're just a check on the payroll or a name on an insurance policy.

To me though, the janitor was Mr. Deas in elementary school and Mr. Wesley in middle school. To me, the garbage worker is Joe or Robbie. To me the truck driver is Donnie or Chad or Keith or just Pa. You see, these people are just that-people! They have families that mean the world to them. They've sacrificed. They've failed. They've succeeded. They have been a part of my world and always will be.

There's an old saying that says, "No matter how far you go in life, never forget where you came from or where you are going."

Tonight, I have a wish that people would learn to see everyone the same. I wish people would learn to see the contributions that all people bring to society-those who are rich and those who are poor, those who are educated  in academics and those who are filled with common sense, those who are black and those who are white. Can't we just see people for people? I sure do try!

Tonight, the measure of a man can be found in how hard he tries to treat people as a name and not a number. Who's your number or is it a name?

That, my friends, is just a few thoughts from a small town southern man!