Thinking About Others First

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Last week I hurried into the local post office hoping to get in and out quickly. I was first on line, it was 9am, but the doors were not open.  A few minutes later one of the local postmasters came to the door. I wasn’t pleased – he was late. 

He unlocked the door so I went,  but he turned and said “Why did you come in I haven’t propped the door yet.” The ire was rising within me – late and rude I thought. But then, out of nowhere, he starts mumbling something to the effect of oh who cares, what does it matter, nothing matters, I lost my dog, lost my house who cares.

I processed this as he proceeded to go behind the desk. I finish the transaction, said thank you but not much else.  I went to leave but stopped, went back and said “ I am sorry you are having a bad day, I don’t know your circumstances but I truly hope your day and situation get better.” 

It bothered me. I was almost really rude to this person because he was 5 minutes late and if I had heard even half of what he said correctly my 5 minutes was nothing in the scheme of things. I wish I had done more. 

Not 24 hours later did a Go Fund Me Story hit my facebook page – Brad and his wife – our local post master - had lost their home in the recent tornados in CT, his insurance was limited and  he needed help. His mumblings were not rudeness but a cry for help. My opportunity came to do more. 

That’s when you realize, you generally don’t know what’s going on with the people you interact with every day.  How many times have you been short or rude with a person because of the way they are acting.  Instead of reacting what if you asked them how they are or if there was anything you could do for them. Even just a smile or a thank you could change their day.

At Inspiring Comfort we teach children and adults how to connect and comfort.  We believe comforting is a skill that can be taught and learned so that others can better recognize when someone is hurting. In our busy, hurried world, we are not always good at paying attention to emotional cues. We tend to spend most of our time thinking about our own hurts instead.

The next time you feel your ire boiling, take a step back, think about the other person, not you.