What does it mean to be human?
When you first think about humanity you may first think of the good that we see in the world. But as humans, we tend to have both good and bad happen to us while we are living our lives.
As humans, we have a range of emotions both good and bad. While our emotions make our experiences, it also creates the experiences of the people around us as well.
Think of the last time you got angry at someone. What happened?
You probably thought of how much they were inconveniencing you. How much they didn’t understand what you were going through. After all, if they understood exactly what you were going through they wouldn’t have gotten you angry.
A lot of what goes through our heads when we get angry is all about ourselves. What would happen if we thought about them instead?
What if they were having a bad day and were stuck in their own heads? What if they had received some bad news and actually needed someone to look out for them? What if they didn’t even know that they made you angry?
Start paying attention to the people who are around you. If you are grocery shopping, do you notice if your cashier is happy? Sad? Or are you more concerned with the never-ending to-do list? I’ve noticed the more we pay attention to others, the more we start to have compassion.
This world is so lonely. We tend to get stuck in our own heads being more concerned with our day to day then we are with the day of others.
What can you do now for someone in your everyday life?
When you start paying attention to the people around you, you have a better opportunity to be compassionate and change the outcome of a person’s day or even their life.
One Sunday I was walking out of church when I noticed someone who is usually happy sitting quietly on a chair. I walk up to them because I felt like something was wrong. I asked if they were okay and they said that it has been hard recently but they were fine. Later that evening, I received a note from them saying that they were very appreciative that I had taken notice of them.
Taking notice doesn’t have to be making sure that someone is okay. It can be in the form of a compliment, a kind gesture, or anything else that you feel compelled to do.
My challenge for you is to take notice of different people for the next week. see what you can notice about them and show compassion.
