There were two men who were crossing a busy street, it happens that these two men by coincidence, happen to have some sort of visual impairment. What I am about to say, might sound disrespectful to the visually impaired, so let me make sure that my intent is known so that I do not get any hateful mail form any disadvantaged groups. Back to what I was talking about. These two men, did not know each other previously, in fact they had no idea of each others existence in that town, let alone on the planet. You get the point, they were totally strangers to each other.
I believe that the average term that people usually use to refer to these kind of people who have this type of visual impairment is " cork eyed". I do not know what the clinical term for this impairment is, anyhow this illustration is not intended to disrespect anyone. Its strictly for the purpose of instruction and uplifting. So these two men had that condition. Think about this for a second, two men were busy focusing on their daily normal routine, walking briskly attempting to cross this busy city intersection, one coming from the opposite direction, so that they met in the middle of the street.
Just as they got to the middle of the street, they bumped into each other and fell down. This was a dramatic event with papers flying into the air and people looking at this spectacle wondering why two people couldn't cross the road without bumping into each other, especially because there was ample room for the both of them. Just when you thought that this was getting even more bizarre, what transpired next was sad yet sickly humorous to some degree. Here were the two men on the ground disoriented, and upset.
They both got up on their feet real quickly trying to act like what just happened did not just happen. In this state of embarrassment they both got vexed with each other. One of them reprimanded the other one harshly, " why don't you look at where you are going? so that you don't bump into other, you stupid jerk ". As soon as he said that, the other man also responded in kind " why don't you go where you are looking at ? cant you see? You idiot. And just like that these men erupted into a fight and what a fight it was, until the security personnel broke it up.
Its unfortunate that these two men had a visual impairment, that legitimatey contributed to them inadvertently bumping into each other and falling down on the ground. What is inexcusable was for these two grown men to have resorted to violence on each other knowing very well that they both had the same problem. By virtue of both them being cork eyed, there was no way of them being able to accurately perceive the distance and placement of objects in time, so that it affected their cognitive abilities to the point of them colliding into each other.
What was so troubling about this? The fact that either of them had the audacity to even reprimand the other one, for not having the ability to control their movement and decision making process. The underlying problem here is not that they bumped into each other, the underlying problem here is that, they both refused to acknowledge that they had a visual impairment through no fault of their own. Failure to do that, lead to their decision making process being affected by their emotions, as well as their egos.
Being a man, its extremelyy to admit that I am wrong. However, after doing things the hard way, I have learnt to humble myself and admit when I am wrong. By doing this, It has made me realize that admitting my mistakes does not make me less of a man, it only makes me more of one. By coming to terms with my imperfect being, I have come to accept the perfect me. Why is this important to me? Because I know who I am I don't have to defend myself to you, package myself and sell myself to you so that you can accept me. I am who I am, confident in who I am and I am responsible for my own actions, I accept the consequences of my actions without excuse.
The two men were not evil people, far from it. They just did not want to accept the fact that they had shortcomings like everyone else. A simple sincere apology would have diffused the fight and who knows, they would have become friends and ultimately their own support system since they already had a common identifier in their lives. How many time in life and in business do we let our egos get us into trouble because we are too proud to admit our mistakes. Don't bump into me with your arrogance, solve your issues. Don't bump into me with your excuses get the job done. Don't bump into me with the gossip I don't want to hear it.
Dont bump into me with the wrong mindset, I am looking for people who will tell me the truth so that we can be a success together. At the end of the day in the final analysis we can do without the unnecessary fighting if we could just admit when we are wrong. Its not about me or you thinking that I am better than you, its about me looking at my responsibilities and my obligations that I have to account for in every situation.
Life is the ultimate transaction, it can cost you anything from your job to your loved ones, to your sanity to your family and your friends. Don't be too quick to respond when you are in distress, because it affects the way you think and will often result in severe consequence. Don't always be the one who is looking for a fight that you will not be able to win. Choose your fights wisely if you have to fight. Is it really worth your time to get into fight with someone about bumping into you when you are only two people on a street?
Don't mess with people who have nothing to loose, you don't want to be one of their testimonials. They have too much to loose. Life is too short and there are other opportunities available for us to get into a fight over some nonsense. Could you please stop bumping into me, there is enough space for everyone here, just find your spot and settle in quietly.
Thanks so much for posting this. It's true, admitting when you are wrong makes you more of a man. It takes both courage and confidence. Unfortunately, many of us are lacking in those qualities. If you come from a group that has been disrespected for many years or generations, such as people with disabilities, you are much more likelly to be infected with self-hatred and low self-esteem.
I would love for you to write an article for my ebook. I'll be in touch.
Have a great day! Zhana
Wednesday, May 6th 2009 at 7:33AM
Zhana Books
This is true, Graham. I think once a person could admit to themselves that they made a mistake or even just apologize to someone even if you did not do them wrong, there is always that "just in case". I think it show character and grace at the same time, and furthermore, it shows that a person could resolve difficulties and move on from them.
Wednesday, May 6th 2009 at 11:30PM
Cheryl Hendrix
