In a reasoning with a dear friend the other day, he mentioned how individually we are all drops of water that collectively form the ocean and we are all the ocean. All of a sudden I was struck by a deeper realization and took the analogy further; like the ocean there is life inside and outside of us that affect and effect our behavior and appearance.
Allow me to explain further. We know that from bacteria to plankton to the blue whale, life in the ocean greatly affects life on land, yet we know very little about the ocean. At least 80% is yet to be explored. Ocean currents are a continuous directed flow of ocean water capable of traveling thousands of kilometers. Surface currents move water at the surface of the ocean, while submarine river currents flow deep below. The ocean's surface rises and falls predictably due to changes in gravitational forces originating from the Moon and the Sun. These changes in ocean surface level are known as tides and are evidence of the influence celestial bodies have on our planet.*
In other words, there's a lot going on inside and outside of the ocean that affects/effects what we see, hear, and feel at the beach or on a boat. Sound familiar? Have you had days filled with emotional and environmental turmoil and yet all people see is that you're grumpy or mean? Perhaps if they delve deeper, they would find pain, confusion, frustration or a myriad of other 'submarine river currents' that would not be defined the same way as your surface behavior.
We are often so quick to judge and often misunderstand others because we are unable to see the 'submarine river currents' or the 'lunar gravitational forces' that are affecting/effecting them. When we first engage others, we sometimes forget that they lived an entire life before we met them. We fail to consider that perhaps it will take a while, maybe even another lifetime to really know who they are. We also expect them to behave as we do with the assumption that our behavior is the best, forgetting, of course that the life inside and outside of them may be completely different than our own.
As humans, we tend to live our lives based on our own perceptions which are formed by our own experiences and knowledge handed down to us. If we remember this when we engage with others, perhaps we will be more willing to be open to another's perceptions, experiences and knowledge if for no other reason than to better understand them. The ocean has been around since human beings appeared on earth, yet we have yet to explore 80% of it! Maybe like the ocean, we should dive deeper into others before we judge their tides.
*http://marinebio.org/Oceans/index.asp
Allow me to explain further. We know that from bacteria to plankton to the blue whale, life in the ocean greatly affects life on land, yet we know very little about the ocean. At least 80% is yet to be explored. Ocean currents are a continuous directed flow of ocean water capable of traveling thousands of kilometers. Surface currents move water at the surface of the ocean, while submarine river currents flow deep below. The ocean's surface rises and falls predictably due to changes in gravitational forces originating from the Moon and the Sun. These changes in ocean surface level are known as tides and are evidence of the influence celestial bodies have on our planet.* In other words, there's a lot going on inside and outside of the ocean that affects/effects what we see, hear, and feel at the beach or on a boat. Sound familiar? Have you had days filled with emotional and environmental turmoil and yet all people see is that you're grumpy or mean? Perhaps if they delve deeper, they would find pain, confusion, frustration or a myriad of other 'submarine river currents' that would not be defined the same way as your surface behavior.
We are often so quick to judge and often misunderstand others because we are unable to see the 'submarine river currents' or the 'lunar gravitational forces' that are affecting/effecting them. When we first engage others, we sometimes forget that they lived an entire life before we met them. We fail to consider that perhaps it will take a while, maybe even another lifetime to really know who they are. We also expect them to behave as we do with the assumption that our behavior is the best, forgetting, of course that the life inside and outside of them may be completely different than our own.
As humans, we tend to live our lives based on our own perceptions which are formed by our own experiences and knowledge handed down to us. If we remember this when we engage with others, perhaps we will be more willing to be open to another's perceptions, experiences and knowledge if for no other reason than to better understand them. The ocean has been around since human beings appeared on earth, yet we have yet to explore 80% of it! Maybe like the ocean, we should dive deeper into others before we judge their tides.
*http://marinebio.org/Oceans/index.asp
