You Do You. I’m Gonna Do Me.

I used to think this was a pretty selfish statement. Where is the team work? Where is the selfless giving to help someone out?

Then I realized in today’s culture, this might be one of the best statements I’ve heard in a long time. Because what it speaks to me is this: I value your opinion enough to let you choose what’s best for you while I choose what’s best for me.

It doesn’t mean we have to agree that your choice is right for me, and my choice is right for you. It means I love you enough to value your choice and I would like that same respect in return.

Another way to say it would be, “let’s agree to disagree.” We’re not agreeing, necessarily, that what you believe is what I believe. We’re agreeing that each of us can make our own decisions for ourselves and our families.

I, for one, want to spread more love and unity in respecting each other’s opinions instead of hurt feelings or resentment for not feeling heard or valued.

It also means if we can have a civil conversation about why you make one choice and I make the other, we could learn from each other and give God a chance to speak to our hearts. But, it also means if that conversation becomes too heated, we choose to stop before it ruins a friendship or family connection.

Next time I hear “you do you, I’m going to do me,” this is the context with which I’m going to base those words on, and I’m going to smile. Because it means I’m that much closer to choosing love, unity, and connection with someone I care about, and neither one of us has to be right for the other person. Instead we can both be right for our own circumstances.

© Cheri Swalwell 2021