It Is NOT About Me

Jake at Pioneer Park in St. George
This has nothing to do with my post
but I wanted to put this picture somewhere!

Once upon a time I had asked one of my kids to let me practice a presentation I had to give on them and they reacted in a grumpy, not kind manner.  I  was upset, and a bit hurt, but later heard this same child telling their Dad all about what a hard time they were having, and the challenges they were dealing with, and I realized that their reaction wasn't about me at all, it was about them, and their struggles.  Interestingly, on the same day I learned the same lesson with another child.  More recently I was frustrated with someone who I later realized had been struggling a lot.  I had been too busy being frustrated to notice.  I am sad about that. 

I want to always stop and think when someone is doing something that is frustrating, or saying something that sounds personal, or hurtful to me, that It is NOT about me.  It is about what they are going through, and how they are feeling, and what they are thinking.  I want to be compassionate.  I want to remember always that "in the quiet heart is hidden sorrows that the eye can't see".  (Lord, I Would Follow Thee, by Susan Evans McCloud)  When things seem hurtful, I want my go to response to be love and kindness.  That is the person that I want to be.

Dan climbing up to be with Jake.