School doesn’t teach compassion or empathy. It doesn’t teach you how to be a good listener, how to read body language, how to talk to people of totally different backgrounds and still have a good time.

I’m definitely not saying it doesn’t facilitate thoughts or conversations about those things, but some things need to be learned outside of a classroom.

I can’t stand the phrase ‘life experience’ either as a gauge for learning and intelligence because it minimizes the fact that everyone’s life experiences are different.

Your life experience may have been positive. Perhaps you hold degrees and have a great job. Perhaps you weren’t born into poverty.

On the other hand, perhaps you’ve had obstacles in areas I’ve had privilege.

My life experience has been comprised of struggle, but I’ve still had plenty of privileges and I’m aware of that.

I have no degrees, yet I’ve been able to do some really amazing things.

I was an editor, a copywriter, a literacy tutor, a social worker, and now a full-time writer (though that was not really a choice I made).

More importantly, I fostered a community online for people with similar struggles to mine from all walks of life. I help people feel less alone. That’s the biggest thing I’ve done so far, in my opinion. Help others feel less alone.

So, be intolerant of ignorance. Ignorance is a choice. But please be open-minded when it comes to those of us whose lives never allowed for higher education or possibly even completing high school. These are not actually metrics for intelligence.

Besides, I stand by the concept that the greatest measure of intelligence is how kind and compassionate you choose to be, especially when it’s not fucking easy to be kind.

Maya Angelou really touched me with the quote at the top of this post, and as she inspired the title for Still, I Rise (coming July 21st) I was drawn to it and compelled to share these thoughts with you.

I’m hoping they didn’t come off as combative, because these words aren’t meant to start a fight or open up a debate, they’re meant to help us see each other for who we are and not by a degree, a job title, financial status, etc.

They’re meant to help put a stop to starting conversations with “So what do you do for work?” or “Where did you go to college?” and help people consider other options for getting to know each other on a deeper level. We’re more than what we do for money. We’re more than our socioeconomic status.

We’re all just people.

I don’t understand why we’ve put so much distance between us.

As an author, I’m sort of a student of human behavior, and I write a lot about our behavior into each story I create. Keep in mind that I write horror stories.

I do get disheartened at times, but I still try to have faith in us, even as society pushes me closer to misanthropy each year.

I will still be kind to those who need kindness. I will still help others feel less alone. I’ll still write about the good, the bad, and the horrifying things I see every day. Some of them might even be unexpected.