Who are you to judge someone?
Maybe we all should walk a mile in someone's shoes before we judge..
The old adage “Walk a mile in my shoes” literally means don’t judge someone until you understand what they have experienced, the challenges they’ve met and where they’ve come from.
Everyone is different. Everyone has lived a different life. Everyone has had a different childhood. These all lead to people who have different stories, struggles and stresses.
Remember this. Remember this every day.
Some people will never understand. There is no way for them to. I mean, I can never understand what a person who was brought up in a high crime area feels, or a person who lived in a different state on a large farm, or a person who lived a life of luxury. How could I as everyone is raised in different surroundings by different people? I can try though.
It’s no one’s fault of what kind of life they were born into. If your parents are rich, you get raised with more than others. If your parents are poor, you get raised with less than others. We can’t fault each other for that. Being raised differently doesn’t mean you are better than the other person. It’s who you are in your heart. It’s if you have good values. Are you a good person?
We all walk by strangers throughout our day. You don’t know what they are going through. How could you? They may have just lost their job and are devastated and stressed. They may be hiding their depression of a family member who has just passed away. We don’t know what is going on in someone’s life. The happiness, the sadness, the fears, the stresses. People can act out based on what they are going through. Try to not judge, try to be patient, understanding and accepting.
I tutored a really nice woman who once told me she thinks of one thing to be grateful for each day. You can be grateful the sky is blue, the grass is green, that you are healthy, that you can get out of bed and walk easily. There are so many people who have it harder than you do. Let that sink in. For each of your woes, there are people who are worse off than you. So stop feeling sorry for yourself and instead, try and find the goodness in your day.
Everyone is different. Everyone has different beliefs. Just because they don’t believe the way you do, doesn’t make them wrong. Ask questions, try and see things from their side of the fence. You might just learn something and be more empathetic. If you don’t agree, that’s ok but you might have just learned something new and can now see it in a new perspective.
For me personally, it takes me a minute to grasp a new opinion or idea and think it through. A new idea for some people is very uncomfortable and takes a while to seep in and to understand. Give people the space to do that.
People will say the wrong thing, use the wrong word, or the wrong term. Give them a break. Maybe that’s just how they’ve said it for their entire life and thinking a new way and speaking a new way or learning what offends people, will take some time. Some people might not change. That’s on them. Let it be. You can’t change people.
We’re all learning and we’re all learning to get along. Let’s try our hardest.
Walk a mile in someone’s shoes and maybe you’ll understand.
Thanks for reading.
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Karen