The answer is LOVE

This world may seem tough to maneuver through at times....especially when it's relating to other human beings. Like when some guy cuts you off in traffic or a cashier is rude or some person in your workplace who always seems to have an attitude with you - and you think, "who pissed in their cheerios?". For all we know, their furry friend or a relative could have just passed away or they could be facing tremendous stress related to home life, their finances, legal troubles, medical problems etc.....Overall, humans are innately "good" and desire to give and receive "love" and "compassion". You've seen a thousand examples - be it at the scene of an accident or a devastating event where there is suffering involved - humans have a natural instinct to "help" when they see another suffering - and it always re-instills our faith in humanity. 

One very important fact, is that we need to meet people where they are at - in life, in this moment. Everyone is having a different human experience. It's like the saying, "put yourself in their shoes" - popular saying - not so popular to remember in the moment when someone has upset us with their behavior. So, it's really good to put this one in our back pocket and use it on a rainy day when someone has been offensive, abrasive etc. It sounds simple, but we often forget to do this and after an experience we get all wrapped up in - why did this happen? who do they think they are? - and really, it's wasted energy. That energy should be channeled into compassion. That's it. Take a step back from a given trying situation and just think compassionately for that other human or humans. Because we can sit around all day and guess why someone did this or that, but the truth is that we will never really know and frankly, we don't have any control over anything except how we CHOOSE to respond to any given situation life throws at us. 

Maybe dealing with other people gets to be too much for some to handle. We live in a world where it is possible to have little to no contact with other people - which some choose to do - one can order anything imaginable from the internet - even groceries and have then delivered to your front door, without ever having to step foot out into the real world and interacting with other human beings. We have plastic relationships with people on social media sites - displaying our lives how we want them to be portrayed - disrupting actual human communication - stunting our developmental skills in the real world. 

So, what do we have to do to change the way we process our encounters with other beings? We need to recondition our mind from the way it has been conditioned in our culture to be - reactive, jealous, angry, hateful, blaming, judgmental.....Our minds automatically go to a grandiose place in our minds, based on our own set of values and ideals about how humans should behave and why. But who are we? We are not them. In the big picture we are all one - however, here I am referring to the fact that we have no idea what or where that person comes from and what their upbringing was and what their belief system is in life - and ultimately, it doesn't matter because we should treat all people the same no matter what - with compassion - because we are ONE and because we understand that everyone is unique and has had a life full of experiences that have influenced them that we have absolutely no idea about. The answer is LOVE. 

The only thing we truly have any sort of control over in the entire universe is our own SELF - and okay, sometimes even that, can be debatable ;) However, getting in touch with our Self, our true nature, our Atma is essential. Because once we know our true self - all the trivial things we have been worried about all our lives - melts away - life makes more sense - there is a sense of calm within the soul - we are able to traverse the waters of life without a load of turbulence. Chaos, tragedy and unexpected experiences most definitely do not stop happening - it's the way we are able to process those experiences that changes - our perspective - and once that changes - it changes everything. So, go spend time in nature, do yoga, move your body, love your neighbor, read a book - such as The Bhagavad Gita (life changer) or any of the books listed on the 'Wisdom Reads' page of this website, help out a complete stranger, trust that all is as it should be.....mostly, understand that each and every one of us is 'doing our best' - operating at a certain capacity and level of consciousness based on the 'tools' we have at any given moment. 

So, next time some random person flips you the 'bird' on the highway or steals your parking space or spits gum on the sidewalk and it get stuck on your shoe or does anything that makes you feel a negative way, remember that there is something within that person or something that may be happening with that person that influences them to behave in an offensive outward manner - it's not you - it's them - it always has been - and also remember that no one can make you FEEL any way - we CHOOSE how we will react and feel. So, don't let people get under your skin - you have better things to do - give them a hug - go take a bubble bath or walk your dog or get lost in a forest. Life is just too utterly beautiful.