If there is one thing the 21st century does to you, it is constant exposure to diversity. Gone are the days where people are born around the same set of people, grow up and live in conformity to that same society and live their last days surrounded by the same. We have mixed up. We now live with or around people who distinctly differ in back ground. When faced with such differences, we have clinically tried to tackle them across boundaries. We have learned that living with people doesn’t always spell understanding to a full extent but it always means accepting differences. Various cultures may contradict in their practice but their beliefs are all rooted in history; in their heritage; in the very core of their being but all deserve equal respect.
In life there is always the divide between the things that we control and those that we don’t. The former is easier, in comparison, to navigate or forecast. Primarily the reason is attributed to the fact that the result is measurable and there is a clear gauge of success or failure. It is the later that is always confusing. We all have different ways of addressing the unknown. The reactions of the unknown can be ignorance, superstitions, fear or panic, OCD or various others. When it comes down to working differences, it is these reactions to the unknown that makes it difficult to accept. Let’s face it even with the known, when we loose no one likes to be mocked for it or looked down. It is when we are dealing with things that are incomprehensible to our logic, or when faced with situations which jolt us out of our comfort zones, that we have to be more tolerant or accepting.
Maybe it scares someone to cross a road after a black cat does, maybe some people feel they will fail an exam if they don’t pray or take a bath (even after studying), maybe some people always put their right foot first when they climb up stairs, maybe your God is different from theirs, maybe some people are scared of cats but just fine with dogs, maybe some people date differently to you. These maybe feelings, superstitions or just belief but they all are differences. However long we engage in a debate or we condescend based on grounds of irrationality or difference from what we believe in, the fact remains that we will never arrive at a conclusive verdict. We are not expected to rationalize or understand them. As long as they are not imposed or intended to harm (those who believe, feel or know different), we are just expected to let them be.
It is inevitable!! In our times we will be faced by an overwhelming difference in reactions from people we work with, our friends or maybe even our own family. Maybe when faced with the unknown all of us react in our own unique way.
Maybe the best thing we can say when we react to difference is “whatever works for you” of course it not being imposed or harmful……
