From Elaina: Have you ever been absolutely obsessed with a song or a movie and want to share it with someone close to you, only to have them dislike it? How can you possibly be friends with this person when they reject something that made your soul sing? It almost feels like they are rejecting the deepest part of you.
Here’s the deal. We can all like different things. We can hold diametrically opposed opinions and still love each other. My husband and I just celebrated our 25th anniversary. One of the biggest things we have walked through is having different religious beliefs. That is a big one! Religion can be seen as the fabric of our core. The filter through which all of our morals and beliefs come to be. There are a lot of religious and political beliefs that my husband and I disagree on. There have been many times that each of us has felt, “How can you love me, when you disagree with something that is my core?”
Our secret? We focus on what we have in common. We realize that we can respectfully disagree (respectfully, most of the time). When it feels like we are reaching a boiling point, we list the things we have in common. We have both agree what makes a good person, even if we disagree on the origin of being good. We both strive to be kind and generous. We have the same basic goals in life. We share a vision for our personal future. We have a similar sense or humor. We like the same movies. The list goes on.
We are all moving into a future where media likes us to believe that it’s us vs. them. If someone thinks differently, they are wrong. You can go throughout your day only reinforcing your current opinion. You can watch the news that reinforces your beliefs. You can stream only the songs you like. You can avoid hearing anything positive about any differing opinions. Shoot, you can avoid any other opinions at all. You can narrow your world to only hear and see what you want.
I encourage us all to open our world! To listen with love. You can listen with an open heart, really hear the other person, disagree, and still love them. Let’s celebrate the diversity we all have!
Get More Happy 