As the sun makes ice melt, kindness causes misunderstanding, mistrust, and hostility to evaporate.” – Albert Schweitzer. What wonderful words – and how relatable for us experiencing an icy winter. Speaking of icy winter, I nearly landed on my can the other day because of our icy winter. I think I’m experiencing some misunderstanding, mistrust, and hostility towards our icy walkways but am hoping those feelings evaporate in the sun. Constant kindness can only help.
I like this quote because it speaks to our condition. Communication is paramount in relationships. When there are misunderstandings – or maybe no misunderstanding whatsoever, the message was ice clear (and cold) – kindness, constant kindness, can melt through to build trust. Granted, sometimes the best option is to agree . . . to disagree.
Our reality
Our reality is we are not going to get along with one another all the time – and some folks just don’t get along at all. That said, “constant kindness can accomplish much.” I recall working with an individual that didn’t like me. I could feel it like rubbing backwards the bristles on a hog’s back. In fact, in a tense moment, out came the words from his mouth, “I don’t like you.”
It kind of caught me off guard but no point in pretending any more. The words came out – thinking out loud. But what was this other than an opportunity? I saw it as a challenge, a chance, to gently demonstrate my values and show respect for his views. And I did. WE did. He did. Through it all we learned a bit more about each other and we agreed to respect one another, and we agreed to disagree where no common ground was to be found. Win-Win.
Speaking on relationships
Yesterday I spoke on relationships – finding commonality in thought and spirit. I guess this is where the rubber meets the road. In a similar vein, if there is a layer of ice between the rubber and the road we may slide off the communication highway into the ditch of misunderstanding, mistrust, and hostility. (I love analogies!) Yes, communication is paramount. Having your tires communicating with the road surface is paramount for safe, productive travels. It all sounds so simple!
The value of experience
I guess this is were experience comes in. And how do we gain experience? It comes from missing the ball 50 times before we finally hit it. It comes from failing 39 times before we find success with the 40th try. Ever hear of WD-40? Could be an urban legend by my understanding was the company wanted to created a Water Displacement (WD) product that took 40 tries to create. What if they stopped at 39? No WD-40 for you! You’ll just have to live with that squeaky cabinet hinge and rusted in bolt.
It’s OK to fail. What is not OK is to accept failure. Get back up, knock off the dust, and swing away. Eventually you WILL connect! I won’t get into the details but yesterday something amazing happened in my life. I had been waiting for it a long time. Had my doubts but clung to hope. Out of the blue and WHAM! out of the park. Yesterday was a great day but today is still the best day of my life. Life’s little miracles. Keep watch for them if you care to but they will likely just sneak up on you and give you the thrill of your life as a total surprise. Remember, “Constant kindness can accomplish much,” in all you think, all you say, and all you do, do it with kindness.
Closing
That about wraps it up for today. Please take note of the images I have included in this blog post for your viewing entertainment. Additionally, please note that all images are offered for sale in a multitude of sizes and variety of finishes at RedBarnProject.com. There is something for everyone. Contact me here if you have any questions. Peace.
