"Equal" is Not "Same"

What with all the issues going on in the world, my family and I have a lot to talk about. Which is cool, because what else are you supposed to do at a family BBQ on the Fourth in blazing temperatures(which I personally LOVE, by the way)?

You talk.

And one of the subjects touched on the Ordain Women movement and things like that.

No, this is not a post about Ordain Women, or any other "current issues." Well, not exactly. This is a post about the words "Equal" and "Same", which was the subject my mom and aunt and I discussed after Ordain Women was mentioned.

It is fascinating to me how words can get interpreted, sometimes twisted, to mean something else. When I was younger, the word "sick" meant "in bed, with a fever, coughing sneezing, not in the best of health". Now, it means "cool, amazing, awesome, delicious", or whatever. It's a generational and cultural thing. Which is sometimes detrimental.

See, a lot of people--and I do mean a lot--have been trying to change the definition of a particular word. And they've been trying since--I don't know, 1912? Probably earlier. Anyway, the word is "equal." For some reason, this word is being interpreted as "same."

Ummmmmmmm. No. Just--no.

"Equal" and "Same" are two different words. They have different meanings, and different outcomes. Look it up. "Equal" means "like or alike in quantity, degree, value, rank, ability, merit."; while "Same" means "identical with what is about to be or has just been mentioned."

Yeah.

Anyone else see the difference? I'll break it down even more:

"Alike"="Similar"="resembling something without being identical."

"Identical"="exactly the same"="clone".

Call me crazy, but I don't want to be a clone.

I want to be a human.

And humanity is equal.

 Because every single one of us eats, breathes, sleeps; has blood and brains, and insides. But our thoughts, beliefs, values?

Totally different.

Because none of us is "the same".

If I was told to build a model of an 1873 .22 out of a rusted pipe,  duct tape and a couple of 2-by-fours, I'd put one of the 2-by-fours through my eye first.

My little brother? Give him a saw, sander, and don't talk to him for two hours, and even though it doesn't shoot, that 1873 .22 replica will look dang good.

 I can't paint; my sister creates watercolor masterpieces with little to no effort(that I can see);

my other brother creates blogs and apps; I write and play around with them.

I can psychoanalyze a movie to within an inch of it's life and tell you exactly why it was good or bad; my family just wants me to shut up and enjoy it.

But we are all humans. See? None of us are the same. We're all equal.

A mother doesn't love her children "the same"; she loves them "equally".

A teacher doesn't teach his or her students "the same"; he or she teaches them "equally".

Plants do not grow "the same"; they grow "equally".

Ok, yes, the plant thing is a stretch.

But an acorn won't grow into a willow tree no matter how hard you try to force it to do so. It won't work.

Just something to think about.