Wang Chien (AD 756–835) eloquently wrote the above when he heard his friend was coming back from the war. It came my way recently from a dear friend (thanks Michelle for your muse).
It got me thinking about what creates distance and what creates closeness.
Distance is more than being physically far apart, it’s:
- not feeling understood or worse, feeling deliberately misunderstood
- not being able to understand, despite standing on your head for trying
- not resonating, not relating, not clicking with someone
- feeling like your colleagues are speaking a foreign language
- feeling like you’re being denied the secret code of inclusion
- feeling more uncomfortable than an ice cube on a hot summer’s day
- thinking you got it, but realizing you didn’t
- feeling awkward and being embarrassed
Perspective will do that. It can be cannily inclusive or highly elusive. Shrinking the surface of the world and bringing us together is about a mutually understood perspective. Being able to see ‘other.’ Being able to include ‘different’.
Like a Destination Life Lens™ taking into account a Journey Life Lens’™ need for processing.
Like a Stop Life Lens™ holding his breath and jumping in, for the sake of a Go Life Lens™.
Like a Carrot Life Lens™ knowing not to step in and ‘fix’ what appears a mess, as things do really work out in the end for a Mountain Life Lens™.
Like a Head Life Lens™ trying really hard to listen and trust their intuition because she’s seen it work so well for a Heart Life Lens™.
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