Lesson Taught AND Learned

Yesterday, I wrote of judgement.

I asked a lot of questions about "would you know by looking at me" . . .

Although I had one person answer yes . . . she's kind of a cheater. She's known me since before I actually existed. She has a leg up on the competition. And I love ya for it!

But . . .

The point was you never know what anyone has been through ~ during the day or during their life time. Your vision of the day may be vastly different than the person next to you. You simply are clueless to the hardships they've known or may have experience in the last hour. You just don't know.

I actually was kind of proud of what I wrote yesterday. I told a friend last night that every now and again, I give myself an imagined high-five when I really like what I write. Yesterday was one of those days. Sometimes it feels good to 'teach' a worthy exercise.

Last night, I also learned my own lesson.

In the midst of a laughter-filled, sarcastic sort of meeting in which many of us learned many new things, one of my co-horts was hurt by the banter and left early. The collective pain in the room was palpable. Not a soul had directed anything at this individual, but she took things to heart and very personally.

Now we cannot be responsible for other people's feelings or actions, but we can certainly be in charge of our own! I do hope that my friend realizes that we are all in the dark in regard to her tasks and we are thankful and gracious for every bit of her endeavors. We would never belittle, demean, or intentionally cause harm or malice.

You never truly know the day, the week, the month, the year, the life that someone has led. Choose your words and actions carefully. The tiny ripple you cause today can become a tsunami that drowns you tomorrow.

Taught and Learned! Thank you!