Space and Grace

I’m going to apologize right up front if this week’s newsletter gets a little preachy. I’m not intending to go in that direction, but this is a topic near and dear to my heart right now.

We all want it. We all need it. But we aren’t always good at giving it – either to ourselves or to others. I’m talking about space and grace, of course.

But what is space and grace? Here’s how I define it.

We don’t all have the same beliefs, the same problems, the same challenges, the same issues. We each have our own set of goals and priorities that consume our daily lives (whether at home or at work). Sometimes, the goal is to simply make it to the end of the day. Nothing grand. Nothing life altering. Simply one foot in front of the other.

But we’re all in that same boat. It can be easy to disparage or be critical of someone that doesn’t see the world the same way we see it or experience it the same way we experience it.

My family and I don’t always see eye-to-eye on every topic (we wouldn’t be human if we did). We try to be mindful and respectful of different points of view and experiences that don’t intersect with ours. It’s hard. It’s incredibly hard. But when we abandon space and grace, we run the risk of hurting people for no good reason and alienating people we love. We run the risk of demonizing otherwise good and decent people. It’s a shame, really. Space and grace.

(I also realize removing toxic people from our lives can be incredibly healing and freeing; however, that’s a topic for another newsletter.)

We also must learn to give ourselves space and grace. We aren’t perfect. We never will be. It’s ok to make a mistake, to stumble, to fall down – it’s what we do after the mistake, the stumble, the fall that matters. Get back up. Make amends if you need to. Then move forward. One foot in front of the other. And recognize it’s going to happen again – and that’s ok. That’s being human.

Life is hard enough without creating unnecessary obstacles and unnecessary divisions. With a little space and grace – for ourselves and for others we don’t always agree with – we can have some necessary breathing room.

Until next week.

Cheers,

Andy 

(All written content created the old-fashioned way.)