There’s an old saying that we should “Walk a mile in another person’s shoes” before deciding you know anything about them.
The ability to do this is, I believe, completely human. We can choose to try to fully understand another human being, and by making that choice, we ourselves embrace our own humanity.
Until you’ve experienced what that person has been through (or under, or around!) you don’t really know what drives them or what motivates their actions.
Try it today, in your mind. Picture one person in your life who maybe annoys you, aggravates you, just rubs you the wrong way. Imagine their face, their gestures, the way they walk and move.
What do you really see? When you toss your ego out of the driver’s seat and open your heart, what do you see?
It’s another human being, trying her best to get by, trying to do the “right thing”, whatever that looks like to her.
Give yourself that gift today. Really look at someone else. Try to walk in that person’s shoes.
I’ll bet they give you blisters!
Photo by Bert Ferranco, courtesy of Unsplash
With Grace and Gratitude,
LeslieAnne