PEBBLE
All judgments are tragic expressions of our own unmet needs.
~Marshall Rosenberg, shared by Pidge in Pacifica, CA
BOULDER
Judge tenderly, if you must.
There is usually a side you have not heard,
a story you know nothing about,
and a battle waged that you are not having to fight.
~Traci Lea LaRussa, shared by Dan in London, England
PONDER
Judging gets a bad rap, I think. There are so many necessary judgments that we make every day that are required in order to function in our lives:
Is this idea good or bad?
Is that the right way to go or a huge mistake?
Which of these options is the best way for us to proceed right now?
Even when it comes to judging people, there’s a certain amount of judgment required:
Do I know enough about this person to beceme friends?
Should we hire this person for this particular job?
Knowing what I just learned about this person, is it wise for me to spend time with them?
Judging becomes a little more tricky and a little less useful when we rush in and make unhelpful generalizations, fail to consider all the information, or forget how our thoughts and feelings can sometimes trick us into reaching inaccurate and/or unhelpful decisions.
In a world with an overabundance of opinions and an overwhelming amount of information, I’ve become increasingly concerned that our thoughts, feelings, words and behaviors around “us vs. them” judgments have been whipping around a little too quickly and that we’ve been clinging to them a little too tightly. As we make our way through yet another election year with all the rhetoric that comes with it, I’m curious to see if we can cut through all the fear and frustration and consider a different way of moving through these hard times. I’ve spent the last few years engaged in quite a bit of research, conversations, and contemplation…I think it’s time to share a few things with you. Let’s Zoom about it shall we?
Why Can’t We Get Along Anymore?
Depolarizing Our Country, Our Communities, and Ourselves
with Paul Wesselmann, The Ripples Guy
There is no doubt that our society is increasingly polarized, in part because there are some really important issues that have divided the country along seemingly intractable fault lines. THERE IS REASON FOR HOPE: it turns out that we don’t have to agree on everything to get along a little better, and we don’t have to hate each other even when we disagree passionately. After a little background on how we arrived at the current mess we’re in, we’ll explore a handful of resources and research-backed strategies that are being employed around the country to help people from differing backgrounds and beliefs come together together with civility and curiosity to listen, learn, and grow.
Peace,
Paul
P.S. Our #LeapLaughLove shenanigans unfolded in an epic and deeply satisfying way. You can read about them in this Facebook post.
