Learning to be yourself is a worthwhile pursuit but if I am to be myself and you are to be yourself and we are different, then we need to accept those differences in each other. THAT can take more effort than we care to exert!
Anne of Green Gables is one of my all-time favorite movie series. I love the characters, the scenery, the story line…I just love it! One of the things in the show that always makes me laugh is the dynamic caused by the character Rachel Lynde. She is an outspoken, opinionated woman who loves to share her ideas and thoughts – which she considers to always be correct and better than everyone else’s. (Now, stop comparing her to someone in your own life!) Her tongue causes a great amount of consternation for her neighbors and some good laughs for the movie viewer. However, she is a loyal friend who learns to apologize and accept an apology and only wants what’s best (in her opinion!) for those she loves. I’m sure you have a favorite movie, book or TV series that portrays clashing characters much like Anne and Rachel. It’s much easier and more fun to watch them than to deal with them in real life, isn’t it?
None of us is a finished product and we need to remind ourselves that just as we are being refined and reshaped, so are the people around us. The co-worker who drives you totally crazy may be the very one on whom you will depend next year. The neighbor that is always cranky is just being worked on differently than you are. Why do the people around you like different music, different food, different activities than you do? Why do they talk too much, or too little? Why do they want to sit when you want to move or run when you want to walk? Well, why not?! It may be a challenge to figure out how to really enjoy one another but it also may be worth the effort. We’re not always going to gel with everyone, but neither should we instantly throw someone to the side just because they are different than we are. Blasting them for their differences should’t be an option either. Give yourself permission to grow and change and allow them to do the same. This is part of the joy of our journey. Colorful people help make our life more colorful! After all, we are probably a challenge to someone and we know, just as Rachel Lynde does, they could learn a thing or two from us!
Learning to respect others takes time. And effort. And patience…much patience! And prayer. God has created us different for a reason and those differences can bring a special element to our lives. Try not to miss those elements as you go through 2015. There may be a ‘diamond in the rough’ right next door!
A man who isolates himself seeks his own desire;
He rages against all wise judgment. Proverbs 18:1
A man who has friends must himself be friendly,
But there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother. Proverbs 1:24
JEV 