It is convenient to classify things as chairs, tables, etc. It makes it easier for to deal with live, and the classification tells gives me a quick summary of what that thing is for.

Classification, however, is always a challenge, because things don’t always fit perfectly into the boxes where we put them. While from afar, you can say a dog is a dog is a dog, but when you get to know your dog, you learn that that he/she is unique in many ways from your other dogs. As with dogs, so it’s with all things, including humans.

The shortcut of classification, while helpful, has its limits. There’s value in going beyond the label.