You’ve heard the ancient saying ‘people who live in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones.’ I’ll be the first to admit that as soon as I hear that oft repeated line that I laugh. I just imagine people staring at you as you go to the bathroom through several glass walls. So you’re kind of distorted in a way, but they still TOTALLY know what you’re doing? Right.
Glass Houses
So I was thinking about this as I was mowing the other day and grinned, one more time. I wondered why anyone would live in a house entirely made of glass. Then, sweat running down, I considered for the first time, what it might actually mean. Does it mean that fragile people shouldn’t throw rocks, because in some way they may break themselves? Contrarily, does it mean that if you are fragile you shouldn’t do anything to anyone else ? Might they ‘get you back’ and since you are so delicate you might shatter?
Are the stones words? Are they meant to be real actions? Do people who have the common sense to NOT live in a glass house get a free pass to be jerks to everyone else? Does it have anything to do with common sense? What is the alternative? That our house is glass because we can’t afford more? Are our glass houses because we were born poor? Sick? An immigrant? Back to the jerk question. Because their palace of stone, their refuge of wealth, their privilege of birth affords them stability; should they be allowed to torture those without?
Perhaps we should just.. not throw stones?
