The Weight

Sometimes I wish I had a pair of X-Ray Glasses. No, not the ones that would let me see through walls or outfits, but the kind of glasses that would let me see the emotional Weight people are carrying around with them. 

I am personally aware of 5 different people who are currently in various hospitals around the country, and each one of those individuals touches countless other lives - spouses, children, extended family, friends, etc.  I have another friend who has two vehicles and both of them had mechanical issues on the same day!  I know people who just lost jobs, people who are looking for jobs, and another person who just had to let someone go. I even know someone whose dog got sprayed by a skunk just before they were leaving to go to the airport on a trip and they didn't have time to change their clothes or they were going to miss their flight!

It's all Weight people are carrying.

It might be tempting to think that because my job involves having personal conversations with lots of people that I happen to know more stories like this than others.  While that may be partially true, the more important point for us to consider today is, if we could put on these special X-Ray glasses and we looked around, we would notice that everyone is carrying some emotional Weight around with them.  Sometimes the Weight might not be as heavy as others, and sometimes it's extra heavy, but I think these glasses would show that everyone is carrying something! 

Now let's say we all had on a pair of these special glasses and we could see this Weight we are all carrying around. I wonder how that might impact the way we talk to one another or how we interact with others - even strangers? Maybe we would be a lot quicker to extend grace to someone who was acting grumpy or got frustrated quickly? Perhaps we might smile more or take a few extra moments to just pause with someone and let them know we are in their corner? Maybe we would be willing to accept the kindness of others because they could see the Weight we were carrying instead of just acting like everything was fine?!

While the glasses would be an awesome reminder, the reality is, we all know this is true for all of us right now. Everyone is carrying something! How might the reality of that Weight impact the way you interact with people around you this week? If you are leading a team or facilitating a meeting, would this change the way you approach those individuals or that session? When you get frustrated with a situation or find yourself having a short fuse, would you give yourself some extra kindness and grace knowing the Weight you are carrying yourself?

Here's to being mindful of The Weight in all of our lives this week!

Be Well,

Stephen

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