Lessons in the Art of Humility and Compassion

In general, most people just want to be accepted and fit-in. They desire to blend in with the majority of the group. Since; it is a relief, when you are accepted by the whole. Life tends to flow smoothly, when one is not singled-out for being different. Whether, this refers to the clothes a person wears, the way that an individual appears, or one of many other judgment calls. Let's face it, it takes a little effort to point out the faults of our peers. However, when the attention is refocused on the perpetrator of the judgments, this person becomes uncomfortable. They silently wish to stay out of the spotlight, to reduce the risk of not appearing like the group.

We all want to be "normal". Now, in all honestly, it is difficult to accurately define this. In each person's mind, the individual believes that they are "normal". But, there is a problem with this situation. As humans, we are all different. Nobody is exactly alike, even identical twins. So, how do we measure this? We can either leave this to the professionals or we can come up with our own opinion. To me, the answer is simple. We must stand-up for our own beliefs and trust ourselves. It's best to listen to our own hearts.

In our lives, we have all shared times of either being part of the popular crowd, or the less popular side. These types of experiences can happen in childhood and adulthood. Depending on the situation, the person will experience different emotions. These experiences can affect one for years, depending on their nature. This is especially the case, when someone is confronted with a negative situation.

In my life, I have tended to be in the least popular group. My mother was a single-parent, and she could only afford second-hand clothes for us. This created some tension in school with the other children. Then, I had an unusually long and difficult pronouncing surname. This lead to constant name-calling. Lastly, as a person, my independent personality caused me to "march to the beat of a different drummer." This intimidated some of my peers, and left me of out of many wonderful opportunities.