on patience

I'm not sure how to start this post, or even really what to write. I have so many thoughts swirling in my head regarding authenticity. We'll see how this goes.

A coworker and personal friend of mine attended a conference this week on cultural competence...aka accepting and celebrating differences. This coworker is very different from many of my other coworkers in lifestyle, religion, diet/exercise habits, priorities, relationship status, etc. Needless to say, the conference was not her favorite event; she told me she was made to feel "very shallow" and that she felt extremely disrespected by our other coworkers who were in attendance. She has participated in a similar activity before and loved it; this time--not so much.

Her experience got me thinking about how accepting I am of others' differences or their authenticity. Who am I to judge? Along with my voracious appetite for perfection from myself, I expect just as much perfection from others. (Ask my husband.) I tend to think that my way is almost always the best way and any other is ridiculous. I have a hard time letting others figure things out for themselves when I've "been there, done that" and can spare them from pain and loss. I get frustrated when friends and family members don't listen to my advice and choose contrary to what I recommend. Basically I'm a big ball of "I know what's up and you should listen".

So I've decided I need to work on accepting others' faults and flaws just as much as I'm working on accepting my own. It all comes down to being patient--something that is a major struggle and goes hand in hand with perfection. Accepting imperfection requires patience. Patience requires accepting imperfection. Simple as that. I'll keep ya posted!