I was informed of my rights today (or rather the lack thereof) but since the person sharing the information wasn't a police officer or judge, I chuckled. When communication breaks down to one talking about apples and the other talking about oranges, I do what I can to make a fruit salad. Taking myself or life too seriously has never given me any sense of well being, so I don't do that any longer. I thrive on good cheer, and I'm all for me thriving!
A lot of people have helped me along the way in life, or I wouldn't be all that cheerful now. They shared coping skills with me that I wouldn't have thought of on my own. One lesson in point of view is something that I love to pass along. A man took out a coin and held it between us and asked me to describe what I saw. I told him that I saw an upside down man's head. He said he saw something very different and described it to me. He explained that we could both fight about that, or we could each look at the other's point of view and get a clearer picture of both sides of the coin.
Another man shared with me that we all have a right to be wrong. I replied, "Huh?" (Being told something that is entirely different than any message I have received in the past tends to cause me to temporarily put on my dunce cap.) It took some time for me to digest that and to see how thinking that way would impact my life. I tried it out. I liked the effect. I decided to hold onto it. What works for some doesn't always work for others, but that one worked well for me. It got me off my own back and helped me to allow that human beings learn as they go along. I may not agree with what some choose to learn, but I don't have to agree. I am also free to open my mind and see where I might be wrong, and not dwell on it, but rather be happy that I can correct myself.
A woman told me, "Opinions are all like belly buttons (she used another word). We all have one." I learned from that to freely express my opinion and to listen to the opinions of others. It seemed a good way to let people get to know how I think and it helped me to get to know how they think. Some have expressed their opinions about me or what I choose to think in the negative and some in the positive. That has let me know where they are "at". The opinion that counts the most to me is mine. I have to live with that one.
I learned from another woman that words have different meanings to different people dependent upon what feeling each one associates with a word. I learned to listen with my eyes as well as my ears. That doesn't help much online, so I laugh often and say, "Well, that didn't work!" My laughter is at life, not at any one person, other than myself at times.
Ah. Communication. I remain impressed that any of us are able to connect and understand one another at any given moment! Since the only safe way to live is to hide in a cave somewhere, I won't be living safely in this lifetime. I'm committed to blundering my way through. I'm also committed to experiencing a lot of joy and my ulterior motive in relating to others is to take as many with me as I can. I can laugh alone, and I do, but it's more fun to laugh with others.
