Judgment Day

As I walked out of a convenience store with my cup of coffee 1 late October evening, I noticed an older woman standing next to a pay phone. She had a weathered hat on, pink leg warmers that have been out of style for at least ten years, a black mini skirt with gray stockings, what employed to be white sneakers, a brown, tattered coat, and frayed gloves. Stereotypically speaking, she seemed to be homeless. As I waited for my friend to come out of a different store, I nonchalantly sipped my coffee from inside my auto and watched her rummage by means of her bag for some change in order to make a call. My compassion for her grew when I noticed how upset she seemed, aggravated at her disposition and frustrated with where her life had led. At least that is the way she "appeared" to me as I watched her surrender in her search for change and then slide down the side of the store wall in order to rest.

She looked exhausted. I couldn't support but wonder about what trials led her to this day. With yet another sip of coffee, I thought about what decisions she may possibly have produced. I regarded as distinct childhood and young adult scenarios she could have suffered by way of. Perhaps she was emotionally mistreated or physically abused. I considered the possibility of her picking this way of life considering that surrendering when times become insufferable can feel like the most direct route to relief. Regardless of how tough the times she endured need to have been and their cause, I wanted to do something to assist.

Just as I was about to rummage by way of my own bag and present alter for her phone call, a Lexus pulled up along side of me. Surprisingly enough, I watched her jump to her feet, walk up to it... and get in. At that fairly moment, a young girl, about the age of ten, stepped out from the back seat wearing a cat costume. I overheard the homeless woman telling the driver, whose devil horns were perfectly placed, that he was late and she had been waiting for over a half hour. It was then that I realized Halloween was just a week away and that they were possibly on their way to a Halloween party. Because I hadn't yet prepared for the holiday myself, being consumed in my own world, it was not a determining factor.

We make false judgments about men and women each and every day without having understanding what is happening in their lives. We commonly, subconsciously, judge people today based on their appearance and not what they are produced up of. We judge their actions based on what we would do given our own individual experiences. We judge based on the information that we have been provided up to this point and given the environment in which we had been raised and now live within.
It takes a lot of practice to find out how to put yourself in one more person's shoes. I do not even think that it is entirely possible, but we can start by realizing that our thoughts, opinions, beliefs and ultimate actions are based on a combination of all the experiences that "we" have had throughout our lives. Every person experiences their own reality and that reality, regardless of how distinct from our own, creates who they turn out to be and how they will react.

The next time you locate your self judging a stranger, take a moment to understand that they are acting perfectly inside their own world and then smile at them as you carry on perfectly within your own.