People

This morning I saw a message that read, "Funny, isn't it, how sometimes the one person you think you have the least to learn from can teach you the most?  Might as well just love them all!"  I wrote it down, but didn't think much of it, until just now.

A few minutes ago, I overheard one of my colleagues on the phone.  There was a mistake with the shipping of a package, and she was trying to resolve it.  Her tone was very nasty.  She was very curt and downright mean to the person on the other end of the phone.  Not getting the help she thought she deserved, she eventually said, "Forget it.  I will call back to talk to someone else," and slammed down the receiver.

She is the one person in our office of whom I am not very fond.  I try to avoid contact with her as much as possible.  Yet, today I did learn a great deal from her.  I learned how not to treat people.  I learned how important kindness is, especially in the middle of a conflict.  I learned that in order to be respected, you must offer respect first.  I learned that no matter what difficulties I am facing, I do not want to treat others so harshly.

And now, as I type these words, I realize that I need to go home and apologize to my daughter.  I was getting a bit impatient with her over a silly issue last night, and I did not treat her as kindly as I should have.  Yes, I am learning a lot today...