It’s my story, your story, their story –
Every single day, we meet new people, reconnect with old friends. There is one reality, we all have a story. Some longer, some shorter. Some darker, some brighter.
We never know where we are walking into their life. What chapter they’re on, or what chapter they just finished. So the one thing you need to remind yourself is just that. you never know what chapter you are walking in on. And with that, while we never have a right to judge someone, we SURELY can’t judge someone by the chapter we walked in on.
Speaking of chapters –
We aren’t always the best at being human. I know I’m not. I have done things in my past, said things, forgotten things, gotten something wrong. Am I alone here? I have learned from many, probably not learned from some. That’s part of bettering myself in these new days. With each day.
One of the most powerful things in life I have learned, is the power of words. Speak with words of hate, and that shit will echo in my mind for a long time. Possibly forever and most likely too long. Speak with words of kindness, and that too will echo even louder. Truth is, it’s like they said, people won’t remember what you said, but they will remember how you made them feel. For me, it’s really the piece that remembers what someone said and how those words made me feel.
Words I am working on getting better at using – I challenge you to try some –
- I’m sorry I let you down when you needed me.
- I wasn’t listening the best I could then, but I am now.
- You didn’t deserve to figure things out on your own.
- I made a mistake.
- Please tell me how I can support you better.
- You matter to me and I love you…
Have you ever tried any of those?
Last but not least – Be Bored! –
I recently heard someone say “I was on the Tiktok throne” – What they meant was simple and I apologize for the visual. They meant they would sit on the toilet watching tiktok….
I share that statement and possible visual because it ties into another short piece I read the other day. I don’t remember the exact words but I remember enough because again, it’s how it made me feel. And I look at other individuals in my life and wonder if they too could…
Stop taking your phone into the bathroom. Stop using your phone while you’re eating a snack or a meal. Stop picking your phone up when you’re sitting in your car waiting at a light, or when you have a spare minute or two of downtime. Stop going into another room to sit because you aren’t sure what to do with yourself, only to… Wait for it… Pick up your phone. What if you allowed yourself to be bored, what if you allowed yourself to sit in that moment of quiet, that moment of nothing. What are we all so scared of.
Growing up, I was one of the last generations of children that were allowed to be bored. What did we do, we used our imagination. Has imagination slipped away?
In closing –
There is one thing I have learned this week which is building… I can be a good person, with a good heart and I can still tell someone to ‘fuck off”. They may just not deserve a place in my mind, in my heart, in my days. You can do the same thing…
