False What??!

OK Guilty; I admit it. But in my defense, people do it all time. It was strictly for effect, though – call it literary license. I created a false dichotomy – and would point out that we’ve all done it at some point. We assert the two opposing forces most closely associated with our values and frame of reference and pretend that nothing exists in the middle. We call out the two most extreme versions of something and offer them up as a collectively exhaustive list. That’s precisely what I did in a recent post.
In my May 21 entry, "Guilty Pleasures," I hypothesized that there are two kinds of people in the world: (1) those who embrace each day and all that it brings [they want to add value to the beauty and goodwill of our existence]; and (2) those who can’t conceive of anything bigger and better than themselves [and thus will never work to attain it].
Of course these are not the only two options. They are but bookends in a broad spectrum of types. I am the first to admit that I’m uncomfortable with shades of grey and tend to think of all people as either part of the solution or part of the problem. I know in that sense that I have fallen victim to the fallacy of false choice. "You’re either with us or against us" syndrome. Because of my black and white way of thinking, I often find myself choosing between two ideas instead of considering the infinite possibilities that lie between them. So yeah, my use of the false dichotomy may say significantly more about me as a person than the fact that I like to tie up my blog entries with a nice, neat bow at the end.
Following some serious philosophical introspection over the weekend, I concluded that my readers deserve better than my bad logic. I did some gut-wrenching soul-searching and a lot of deep thinking and finally, the light bulb went on. Revelation! I could, at last, move away from the "two kinds of people" notion. I could leave the false dichotomy behind. Because I could finally discern, thru my fuzzy, half-truth fog, that there are indeed not two kinds of people. There are, and always have been, three kinds of people in the world. There you have it! Yessirree! I told you I could move beyond the false dichotomy – I’m giving you, my readers, the new and improved False Trichotomy.

Here they are; the 3 kinds of people:
(1) People uninterested in service or the spirit of giving. They may be selfish or just self-absorbed or simply driven to distraction by the mundane. Regardless, their existence is not marked by contribution, creativity, gratitude, serenity or humility and they leave the world no better than they found it. They can be hard to identify. Many are absolute thugs living at the dark periphery as societal fringe with utter detachment from their community. Others live on your street, drive the same car as you, and haul their kids to the same athletic fields and trumpet recitals. Look out! Once you really know what you’re dealing with, avoid it like the plague because it can drain you.
(2)What I believe to be the vast majority of us. We always try to do the right thing. We give what we can where we can. We seek out like-minded companions and form communities around a shared effort to have a positive impact. We are the T-ball coaches and Scout leaders, church social committee members and 3-Day walkers. We reach out and try to connect, try to support and try to leave things generally better off when we’re done. We spend some of our time being conflicted and frustrated and sometimes we grow tired and complain. We mutter under our breath at times when we have to bake more cupcakes or cart around more kids or stay late to turn off the lights when we really want to be in bed. But we do it. And we get up the next morning and do it some more. We’re energized by the fact that we’re in it together and so we keep going. Yup; that’s most of us. Muddling thru and trying real hard to do the right thing.
(3) Then there’s these guys. What can I say? We all know a couple of them. The ones who always do the right thing and then some! Do it with a smile on their face and a song in their heart. These are the people who never seem to puzzle over what the right thing is – and when it comes time to actually do it, it’s done with a graciousness and sincerity that puts us to shame. There’s no effort involved; it’s a way of life. Compassion and generosity come so naturally to them that it’s almost supernatural. Latch on to these people. Learn from them. Emulate them. Thank them.

There you have it. The 3 kinds of people in the world! By now you know I’m kidding, of course. I’m certainly not about to go pounding all of humanity into one of the three peg-holes I’ve created. We all know "It takes all kinds" and the personality continuum is expansive. Maybe we’ve all had our moments of being each kind at some point or another. As much as I’m a recovering whiner, I still whine every now and again. But I’ve also had a couple of choice moments, especially as a parent, when I’ve been supremely selfless. We’re all a different shape, a different shade, a different degree and, in reality, I’m all for celebrating that! But right now I see a cluster of pegs, way out at the far end, waayyy out in the distance, standing together below the board. My goal is to re-form this peg - me - until it fits through their hole.