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Today's
quotation:
All
people have stars. . . but they are not the same things for
different people. For some, who are travelers, the stars are guides. For
others,
they are no more than little lights in the sky. For
others, who are
scholars, they are problems. . . . But all these stars are
silent. You-- you alone-- will have the stars as no one else has them.
Antoine
de Saint-Exupéry
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Today's
Meditation:
How do you
see the world? I'd bet that no matter how similar we
are in general, you and I see the world in many different
ways. We may agree on some things, but other things
just aren't things that we talk about, like how we feel
when we gaze at stars, or they're completely different for
you and me. I like movies that you don't like, and
vice versa; the songs I like to listen to are different
than those on your playlists. One of the beauties of
life is that each of us experiences our bodies and this
planet in completely unique ways, and that's wonderful.
I try
to respect other people's ways of seeing things.
Sometimes I even try to understand them, and I ask why
they like this movie that I can't stand, or why they see a
picture, one that I see as ugly, as beautiful. I
know that my way of seeing the clouds in the sky isn't the
same as someone else's, nor should it be, and it
fascinates me to hear how other people view the world.
I
think it would be nice if we stopped putting our
expectations on others, if we stopped expecting them to
see things the way we see things. I don't care if
you don't find that building to be as beautiful or as
hideous as I see it, for I know that our differences are
all part of the plan of life, that our diversity is one of
the most important elements of all life on this
planet. When you look at something and tell me it's
blue, then blue it is to you, even if I see it as
green. That's perfectly okay-- I don't need to try to
make you see it my way.
We
see very few things in life, when all is said and
done. But what a joy it is to go through life trying
to see and understand more and more each day. And
it's also a joy to learn from others who see things
differently than we do, for they have much to teach us
about perspective. It keeps me humble to keep in
mind that the way I see things is definitely not a
universal way. That humility is something that I want
to carry with me all my days.
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