Be With Diverse Perspectives
There is much power in the perspective we assume in all situations. The more mindful we are about how we are thinking and what we are believing about people, situations, etc., the more power we have to choose and view all perspectives offered with an objective mind and heart. In the busy movement of our culture, we have lost sight of each other and the importance of understanding and caring for one another.
It is time that we learn and practice broadening our idea of each person’s experience and humbly try to wear the shoes of someone else. It is so easy to cast judgment on another for their difference, because they act in ways with which we do not agree, or look different than ourselves. We must re-train our brains to build more tolerance to that which we don’t understand and celebrate the beauty of diversity. It is imperative that each of us stand up for each other to stop oppression and injustice.
The breath is a great tool for practicing to be with diverse perspectives. When I stop to take a deep breath, I am already taking time out of the busy-ness of the moment to consider my choices. Racism, sexism, and any other –isms begin with our thoughts, which have been conditioned by our institutionalized society which is focused on greed and inequities. We have been conditioned through our basic institutions such as the news media, incarceration statistics, and even our US history educations, to negatively associate color or gender with less intelligence, poor motivation, and/or violent behaviors. These patterns are lies spread around our society like a virus that is unseen and rarely considered from a white privileged perspective.
So let’s take a moment and consider a perspective that is diverse from our own. First, stop and breathe. Consider what your thoughts are saying about any difference currently happening around you, notice the emotions coming up in your body, and pay attention to where they sit in your body. We cannot control anyone else but ourselves. We must be the change that we want to see in the world. To hold on to judgments and anger about someone’s difference will ultimately only harm ourselves. Let yourself be with diverse perspectives no matter how foreign, irrational, or strange they may feel. Everyone has a story and each story has perspective that we can only find when we stop, breathe, let go of our assumptions, and actually listen.