Love the ones that need it the most

by KatieP, in category Health | Sexuality

Sad Man

{photo source}

While we were in NZ, Duckfish and I were at an ‘afternoon tea’ with some friends of my parents. The hostess was our age and her mum was a cheeky older woman still full of life and sparkle. Conversation and laughter flowed easily.

Soon another couple joined us with their grown son. They were all quite solemn and serious. The husband, especially, seemed reluctant to talk and found our jokes less than amusing. Duckfish remarked to me afterwards that once they arrived the energy in the plummeted.

The next day the hostess popped over to my parents’ house to tell us how much everyone enjoyed the afternoon. She told us the man had only just found out the day before our afternoon tea that he had bowel cancer.

So often we judge people without knowing the full story. For someone who had just been given an uncertain future, the man was coping remarkably well.

You never know what’s going on in another person’s life.

Love the ones that need it the most.

About KatieP

Embracing my midlife sexy while exploring modern love & relationships • Devoted to all things beautiful • Master of Arts in creative writing & non-fiction writing

11 thoughts on “Love the ones that need it the most”

  1. It’s so, so true, Katie. Thank you for reminding us all of this. I think people – including myself – tend to make an assumption that someone’s attitude and behavior is largely a reflection of how they feel about US, when really it’s mostly a reflection of how they feel about themselves. I have to remember to always keep this in mind!

    xx

    1. We assume “someone’s attitude and behavior is largely a reflection of how they feel about us, when really it’s mostly a reflection of how they feel about themselves”

      Brilliantly said as always Miss G ♥

  2. A cautionary tale… …While still at school, I had a Saturday job in a local grocery store. A loud, cheeky and cheerful regular customer came into the shop. As she approached the cigarette counter looking unusually glum, I asked jokily “What’s up with you? You look like your mother’s just died.”

    “She has,” she replied, her eyes welling up.

    …I still cringe to this day thinking about it.

  4. Echoing Grace’s comment above. Of Miguel Ruiz’s “four agreements”, the only one I consistently remember to this day is the “Don’t take anything personally” one.

    It’s incredibly hard to do in the moment sometimes, especially when my Inner Melodrama Queen (hello, Mellie, yes I’m talking about you) gets in on the act. But I know in the end that what people do and say is far more about them and what they’re going through than it is about me.

    Blessings, and thanks for the reminder, Katie

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