How Trying On Someone Else’s Shoes Might Actually Make This World A Better Place
The shoe that fits one person pinches another; there is no recipe for living that suits all cases.
Carl Jung
Today is my wife’s birthday.
When gift shopping for my wife, I try to get her something she wants, something she needs, something to wear, and something to read. One of her gifts from me this year was a brand new pair of brown boots. (This kind of fits into two categories – something she wants and something to wear.)
When I she opened them tonight, I told her I couldn’t try them on as my feet were too big.
I laughed at my typically corny comment. I’m not sure she appreciated my comment as much as I did, but I’m learning to accept this about my wife.
As I was thinking more about the comment, I realized that there is so much to gain by learning from the perspective of others. How often do we find ourselves in some sort of disagreement, misunderstanding, or fight because we have failed to put ourselves in the shoes of others?
I genuinely try to live this way, but I fail too many times. It’s hard to relate to others when we don’t really take time to understand where they are coming from in their lives. What experiences from their past are influencing their present? What hurts, pains, and scars impact how they go about life?
As I observe the present climate in the week following the election, I’m seeing our culture is suffering from this same problem. People are protesting, fighting, and spewing all kinds of hate towards one another. In all likelihood, they really don’t understand the person or people they are protesting.
And on the other hand, many of us are likely to dismiss the protestors as being misguided instead of taking time to understand why they are so frustrated.
I think this world might be a much better place if we all took a little time to walk a mile in someone else’s shoes.
When we take time to ask questions, to listen, and to withhold our judgements, we might actually find some commonground on which we can base our relationships.
As we head into the unknown of tomorrow, let’s take time to try on someone else’s shoes. Let’s do what we can to build a better world for tomorrow regardless of how we voted.
Who’s shoes do you need to try on first? Who do you simply not understand? What is one thing you can do to gain a better understanding of their perspectxive? Share your thoughts in the comments.