LOOPY
I had a routine medical procedure this week. The good news…Everything thank G-d is good. The challenging news…I was sedated and am still a bit loopy. When I came out of anesthesia yesterday, I was super confused how the nurses could touch a patient (that being me) via ZOOM! I was convinced I was on a virtual medical appointment and that the nurses somehow reached through the ether and were actually touching me in real time – removing IVs, etc. I was shocked that the technology had advanced to this level.
I’m fascinated that the mind can have this gap in grasping reality. Especially interesting is that I did not question the FACT that we were on Zoom. I only questioned how technology could have advanced to this level.
JEWISH TEACHING
Here is a short story that really impressed me and has stayed with me for years.
He and I were chatting one day while the guys practiced and he passed off this gem.
“Most people speak their intention to the other person’s perception.”
He elaborated that most people do not check to see if what they are saying accurately express what they mean in their minds. Conversely we all have a lens through which we view the world. Whether it be idealistic, pessimistic, frightened, entitled, optimistic…, we hear things through that lens. Most of us are not aware of our “lens” and don’t realize we color communications in a way that may or may not match the actual message. Simply put, there is a double whammy risk for misunderstandings to occur all the time.
This thoughtful coach said, when I give the guys a correction, I think about how I need to say it so they will hear it. This coach did double duty. He not only thought about what he wanted to convey and how to make it clear, he thought about his listener and how they need to hear things in order to receive it. “For example,” he said, “when I talk to Joe, I need to give him a compliment sandwich, when I talk to your son, I need to first answer all his questions before he’ll hear me, and when I talk to Charles, I have to yell at him for him to take in my message.”
It’s a challenge to remember to be thoughtful when addressing others. In rereading the Rebbe’s teaching, I realize I missed an important detail. He said ‘”the rebuke is meant to strengthen the soul.”
I’ll let that sink in. My loopiness is easing. Thank goodness. ©
Love, Vivi
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*gros Kodesh of the Previous Rebbe, Vol. 2, p. 476, adapted by Dovid Shrager Polter at Chabad.org
Cover Eggs Photo by Tengyart, Hands Drawing by Claudio Schwarz, Hands Photo by Elia Pellegrini, Boxing Photo by Xuan Nguyen, Little Dancer Photo by Solen Feyissa, Baseball Photo by Keith Johnston, Photo by Raindom
I just avoid giving advice. I have found I know less each day, so who am I to opine on other’s knowledge?
Thank you Dawni’el for reading and your comments! I appreciate it. 🙂