I’m so thankful for an email I received this morning from a friend who shared about an experience she had yesterday that could have unfolded quite differently if she hadn’t had a shift in her perspective and realized that everyone has a story.

It went something like this and I’m guessing you can relate. You get up and realize your morning isn’t exactly off to a great start. You find yourself dwelling on the negative. You rehearse the laundry list of everything that’s not right in your world, how you don’t measure up, how you’re not exactly where you want to be in your life, etc. You overhear someone talking about politics or really anything that’s a ‘hot button” topic for you and you’re less than impressed with their views. You find yourself irritated, to say the least. And let’s face it. You and I can be pretty quick to judge. In our minds we are placing all kinds of labels and names on this person. And more times than not, it’s often a person we don’t even know very well, if at all.

But what if you saw that same person you were quick to judge just minutes later with tears in their eyes. Trying to wrap their head around some pretty devastating news. That was the case with my friend. Would it change your perspective of this person? Would it open your heart up to express empathy to him or her? To be there to lend support?

I realize this isn’t an opportunity that often presents itself. To console someone we totally disagree with. But my friend had this opportunity and it’s a reminder to all of us that whether or not the situation would unfold in this way, there’s an important life lesson. Here’s what my friend said in her words not mine. “I was a fool to cast this person off because of her political beliefs. I hadn’t taken into consideration her life and what it meant for me to dismiss her intelligence because of her political views. It was a huge lesson learned about quick judgments and how you never know somebody’s life story.” My friend learned all of this by expressing empathy to the person who had just received heavy news. She consoled, asked questions, and thanked the woman she was quick to judge for the wisdom that she shared and she wished her well. Wow!!

Every single person on the planet has a story. Everyone is going through something that is changing them. Or they’ve gone through something that has already changed them. The truth about someone may surprise us. And since we won’t always have the insight about what’s going on beneath the surface with someone, it’s safe to assume that they are battling something. Just like you and I.