Recently I saw a video series in which the video panned a workplace and people were doing their respective jobs, some looked happy, some unhappy, some looked very tired and others looked as if they were virtual Tiggers full of bouncy energy.
Above each and every person was a characterization about what was really going on in their lives right now. One said “New Dad”, and other “Just diagnosed with cancer”, one more said “Child ran away from home’, and one more “Just received a promotion”.
Interesting to think about that we sometimes jump to conclusions about a person or a situation based on looking at body language, or facial expressions, or the way in which they communicate with you at that present time. Are our conclusions valid?
Is it possible to even judge a person at all? Are we versed on how the person was brought up, how they went through their life experiences, he/she learned or did not learn from each experience?
Certainly it may be appropriate to either surround ourselves or not with certain people. We do know those with like interests and sometimes similar stories congregate together. We know that sometimes it is possible to be much closer to our chosen family than it is with our birth family. It is possible, however, or appropriate to judge another based on what we think we may or may not know?
One of the blessings in serving Spirit is being able to see and hear both sides of any human story. People that think someone was being incredibly hard on them find out later that there was an underlying health issue in which the person was not being regulated properly with medication and that was the reason for the irrational behavior. Others find out that they made a difference in people’s lives and never knew how great an impact they had just being themselves until someone shows us unexpected in a reading to tell them their simple gesture of kindness made all the difference to them when they were feeling unlovable.
In the past few months I have made a great deal of friends. I have also had some go to the way side. The ones that went by the way side upset me. Then, I realized how many times in my life people have come and gone. Get a new job, new set of people, change jobs and the chances that you stay in touch with all of those people the same way is very slim. Get a new education, have a life changing event, discover a new way to approach your life and the situations, location and yes, the people will change.
I was reminded recently that it is all part of the human experience to have, allow and accept that this type of change will take place. It does not mean that those people are bad, or evil or have bad energy. It simply means that those people and those situations are no longer part of what we need for our own growth process and if we are truthful, we may not be what they need anymore for someone else’s growth and happiness.
It is possible to be a part of people’s journey on and off during a lifetime. I have had the beautiful experience of having friends reappear and find that we have an even stronger bond, and a more mature bond now than before we parted and took part in our own unique life events.
It is alright to be who you are. It is alright to struggle. It is alright to question. It is alright to be crazy happy and it is alright to feel hurt and angry. It is not alright to judge, criticize and be harmful to another because we do not agree with the way they are doing the same human struggle. It is alright to take a break from each other. It is more than alright to send love, well wishes and a kind though every now and then. We need to be kind, and be willing to look at the big picture.
I know it sounds like a lot of nice words, but I have seen the effects. My older sons both have learning disabilities. When tested at a young age I was told by several they would never go to college, they would never be ‘rocket scientists’. I am glad I did not listen. I am glad for the teachers and the people that believed that the way a person learns does not have a bearing on their intelligence or overall achievement factor. I was also glad that they had a little label over their head so that when they did struggle they were not considered ‘dumb’ but were given the extra encouragement when needed by their teachers and by the colleges they are both now attending. My younger sons have struggled because of living through the illness and death of a parent. One struggles with expressing emotions appropriately and the other struggles with appropriate ways to receive attention. It would be very easy for them to be labeled as ‘bad kids’. Yet, the beautiful people they work with everyday recognize they have needed some extra guidance and love at times as well as redirection. The improvements in them have been massive in the past few months.
Imagine what kind of effect we could have on each other if we just offered that little bit of extra understanding, love and kindness NO MATTER WHAT the label or situation.
Breathe. Live fully. Love.