PRESUMPTIONS

My lesson this week lies mostly in presumptions. For some reason this word has been on the tip of my tongue. At many times in my own life I have found myself jumping to conclusions, or presuming something to be true when in actuality I have found an extreme difference once the results were in. It is hard, we have been taught to be smart, to learn from our experiences, or to make sure and get to the finish line first. I believe this why we are so quick to make these presumptions. Sometimes they are NECESSARY, my challenge to you, is to be discriminatory in your reproach. Make sure you don't get into a RUT of always making PRESUMPTIONS. You just might miss out.

Just some recent observations in this category: What is your first thought when I say the words in BOLD?

HOMELESS:
I was recently in Midtown Houston - where I was walking into a business appointment. Dressed in my suit and giddily working my way to the office building I found myself being screamed at by someone on the street. A woman, clearly homeless, very angry, directing this towards me - with spit, vile words and awful gestures. I immediately assumed her to be mentally disturbed, and perhaps she was. However, I was enlightened with the knowledge of a credence which just "relocated" these homeless individuals from the main downtown area to midtown - I am still trying to figure out how they are deciphering who is a bum and who isn't (if just by looks, WOW). Her anger was not really directed at me, but probably at the individuals who were so hostile with her just hours or days or months or years earlier. We can only do what we are taught. All I could think about was how can I help this woman? (I know this one is touchy)

STUTTERING:
It happens in instances - one assumes that an individual who has a speech impairment has difficulty communicating. This may your initial knee jerk reaction, but those that seek a deeper understanding may realize that this individual communicates more KNOWLEDGE than most given their simple experience. Think about it, if I had a speech impairment, I have probably been through a lot in my lifetime, I have SO MUCH TO SHARE. In actually, this barrier may only be the devils ploy to keep you from the astonishing truth.

BEAUTIFUL WOMEN:
I have decided beautiful women feel invisible. You are so dazzled by their exterior that you forget to know their heart. It is a natural human need to feel heard and be seen beyond what lies on your exterior. No one should assume a beautiful woman's life is easy simply because she has that on her side. In fact, I believe it creates more challenges when it comes to credibility - you have to work even harder just to prove that you haven't floated on your looks.

WEALTH:
Rich people often feel very alone. It is assumed that they have it all - money solves everything. Unfortunately, money can't by happiness. We have all heard this before, now why can't we just let it sink in...

Just thought I would jot a few thoughts down for the week while they were fresh on my mind. I hope this helps us all to take a second look, or look at something from an other's shoes. They just might not fit as well as you think.

GOD BLESS!