Perception
I just went for a great run along the river in Warsaw. On the way back to the hotel, had to run back through this wonderful park. Nearing the end of my run, there are several flights of stairs (not unlike the famous stairs in ‘Rocky’) leading up to the higher ground that the hotel sits on.
As I was nearing the top of the third set of these stairs, there’s a bit of flat area with a huge water fountain in the middle of it. As I got closer, there was a man in a suit walking like a freaking pigeon around the outside perimeter of the pond that the fountain emptied into.
Wanting to avoid this obvious whacko, I steered clear of the fountain only to see the mother on the other side holding a thoroughly entertained young child who was laughing hysterically.
We’ve seen that countless times in our life…yet with what’s been happening in and around me, it was a perfect case in point of… ‘GET THE WHOLE STORY BEFORE YOU PASS JUDGEMENT’
I was chatting with my son Carman yesterday. He has inadvertently become somewhat of a guru to me. You see, Carman as of late has developed an amazing ability to analyze all that has happened and is currently happening to him. He looks at his reactions and he tries to put it into a self help chapter for the rest of his life…a very philosophical guy. He tries to use every challenge that comes his way as a ‘life lesson’ and ‘takes it for what it is’.
As he opens up to me from time to time and talks about ‘his’ revelations, I can see myself so much in him that it helps me with my daily routines as well…you see, my son is not unlike his dad…for better and for worse.
I too can jump to conclusions and automatically think the worst when dealing with other people – no big deal, most people do…. I have some friends that don’t (Marc LaFrance for example) but they are of the few.
Carman came to the conclusion that he drags a lot of his past ‘mud’ into his current relationships. Interesting…not totally a revelation, but interesting none the less.
BUT what will you do armed with that with all of that past ‘mud’?
You will win an argument or discussion at any cost – even ‘make up’ things to win. ***
You automatically assume that because ‘such and such’ happened in the past, well then, it’s obvious that the same ‘such and such’ will happen again. Wanting to ‘control’ the situation and fearing hurt yet again, you will win at any cost.
Ultimately though, you are the one who pays the price aren’t you?
Will your friends ever love or care for you quite the same? Will they be afraid of what they say in front of you…and are you really getting the fulfillment out of that relationship that you would if you had allowed yourself to: ‘GET THE WHOLE STORY BEFORE YOU PASS JUDGEMENT’
I thank Carman for my new lesson and that guy in Warsaw, Poland who I judged to be a lunatic, when all he was doing was being a great, loving and kind father.
posted by Mick @ 10:30 AM
