Being Kind- Part 1

Dear Friend,

"Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle."

Everyday we compare ourselves to others. We compare our weight, or hair, or intellect. Another major part of ourselves that we compare to others is our struggles.

As the quote above says, everyone is fighting a hard battle. It is not fair to justify our actions because "our problems are larger than hers", but it is also not fair to ourselves to downplay our own struggles. We guarantee you, even the happiest, most optimistic person on the planet has been through or is going through something difficult. If you find someone who has had no hardship in their life, please tell us.

But we digress.

Comparisons can sometimes be healthy. They can help us to strive to a higher standard, or inspire us to become "better" people. But, when comparisons start to become justifications for actions, they become negative. Theodore Roosevelt said that "comparison is the thief of joy". Unless you have lived in someone's life, you have no idea what they are going through. So often in our day we judge people based on what we believe to be the caliber of their struggle. Maybe one of your friend's biggest problems is her boyfriend drama, while you are trying to juggle a job that you hate, a death in the family, a heath issue, etc. Your problems may make hers seem petty. For this reason, you may begin to treat her differently. You may think to yourself "It's okay if I'm not perfectly nice to her today, I'm dealing with more than she is anyways." These thoughts do not do yourself or anyone else any good. Someone once said that we are the sky, and everything else is simply the weather. We have all had rainy days, and sunny days, and even torrential winds and thunder and lighting. How is it fair to anyone if we compare our skies to theirs? The best option is for us to lend them an umbrella.

On the other hand, it is not alright for us to think less of ourselves because we are not struggling "enough". Just because the two of us aren't starving or in a terribly uncomfortable financial climate doesn't mean that we should feel bad about ourselves because we are better off than others. One of the best things to do in this situation is to simply be incredibly grateful for what we have been blessed with, and use some of our time and energy devoted to helping other's with their hardships (be their umbrellas). We might not be able to change the weather, but even simply expressing interest in how their day is going, or a simple smile can bring a rainbow to the rainstorm.

Continued tomorrow in part 2!

Yours truly,
Kylie and Catherine