So you know when you get a message and it just what you needed to hear? This morning I was cruising Facebook and this quote came up that I love: “All I can do for you is work on myself. All you can do for me is work on yourself” Ram Dass. I really needed to hear this because I’ve been contemplating how judgmental and sarcastic we have become as a society, me included, and it is beginning to wear on me. I tell myself, “Why can’t we be more positive,” or “Why is there so much judgment, prejudice, unrest, defensiveness and unease in the world.” I see myself being judgmental, more than I used to be and I also see myself as not as trusting as I used to. I used to trust what anybody said or did, no questions asked. Now, my guard is up and sometimes I go through my day with my dukes up ready for a fight.
So who is responsible for these judgments, mistrusts, sarcasm, defensiveness? Oh yeah, myself. I am the only one who can change my internal environment. Some people think you can’t change your internal thoughts or emotions but you can. It is simply taking on a different perspective. (See my blog on Perspective and Focus.) Or telling yourself a different story that is hopefully more true and feels better inside. But back to the quote my Ram Dass, if I see someone struggling or I find myself judging that person for their perspective, can I change them? No, but I can change how I look at that person. I do have to say that I may judge people sometimes but I’m not a big judger of other people. I have not walked in their shoes so I don’t know how hard or easy their life is. I will say that I’ve done a lot of living on all spectrums of life from in the dumps to high on life. So I can say I’ve had many different perspectives as many people can attest in their lives as well. We are all hear to learn from each other. Mother Earth is our school of life and it is our responsibility and choice to work on ourselves. And one place to start is to see how we judge ourselves and others. We are all doing the best we can on this Earth. Let’s remember that about everyone. And in the meantime, Just Be Your Beautiful Self.