Do I believe you?

Many people I’ve come across in my lifetime are very devoted to their respective families. They babysit, do a lot of chores around the house, and most importantly, will defend their family no matter what. This includes, but is not limited to, defending their kin even when it’s clear that their kin is in the wrong.

I respect the fact that one is very devoted to one’s family. After all, some would say that when it comes down to it, all one has in life is family and friends. I personally would do anything for my friends or family, but I try to draw the line when I see that there’s a possibility that my friend/family member could be in the wrong. I try to look at both sides of the situation before weighing my decision on the matter.

That being said, I don’t know if I agree with people that defend their friends and family despite the chance that they might be on the side that was wrong. A few friends that I hold dear to my heart have told me things along the lines of “Of course I’m going to side with (close friend’s name), we’re like bff’s.” I disagree with this approach, because I value justice, order, and doing the right thing over defending my friends and family. Some might call it being cold-hearted, and maybe it is, but I want everything to go the right way in my mind, and if my family or friend made a mistake, then I believe they should be punished just as equally as anyone else. I feel that I shouldn’t support them if they are obviously in the wrong.

I feel like my friends and family are individuals that are only human. Being human, they make mistakes, and should be punished accordingly. Let’s assume that my sister Jamie was taken into custody under suspicion of murder. Naturally, I come to visit her. I ask her if she did it. Let’s say she said “Yes, I did it and I’m sorry.” I would tell her that I’m sorry to hear that she murdered someone, but I am glad to hear that she feels remorse for it. I would have no problem with her being taken away and put in prison for however many years she is sentenced to serving under the laws we live by. Okay, maybe I would have a little bit of a problem(lolll), but ultimately, I would expect her to serve her time.

If she told me that she hadn’t done it and that it was preposterous that I would even question that she could have committed murder, things would be a little different. Knowing that she was in a very tough situation(with all the terrible prison time she would be facing), I would be aware that she has reason to lie to anyone, even me, about whether or not she had actually committed the murder. I would tell her that she has to realize that I can’t simply believe her side of the story without seeing the evidence.

This goes back to me being cold-hearted. I guess I kind of am, but I feel that justice should be served, no matter who is getting punished. For although I would wish for my sister to not have to go to prison, I also realize that the person she murdered also has a family that deserves justice. Whether or not prison time is a worthy punishment is another question altogether, but nonetheless, my sister would deserve the punishment given to her.

Come to think of it, the whole legal system is kind of questionable at times(lol), but that’s besides the point in this blog. The point of the matter is, I don’t know if “family comes first” is always true.

Anyways, that situation is highly situational and in all likelihood will never happen(well, let’s keep our fingers crossed lol.). So let’s bring it back to more realistic terms. Let’s say my friend Edmond was caught up in some stupid drama(again, highly unlikely, I don’t know if he’s ever been caught up in any real drama). Let’s say he called a girl, let’s name her Moesha, a slut, or some other drama-causing statement like that. Moesha’s friend Cristina decides to jump in and try to resolve things by asking Edmond’s friend Justin about it. Cristina asks Justin what happened.

Without knowing any of the facts, Justin passionately defends Edmond. While defending Edmond, Justin is forced to change some of the facts of the story to accommodate his defense of Edmond. This is where a lot of drama snowballs, because facts are changed, and the gossip that spreads changes form. This just snowballs into a much bigger problem then what would have happened had one person simply been objective to the matter and realized that there’s a possibility that their friend/family might be wrong.