When the days get rough and uncertain, I tend to watch comedy shows or lose myself in the Comics section of the newspaper. Sometimes the ability to distract ourselves is the way to survive the harshness of any situation.
Oftentimes, though, comedy and comics shed light on the Real World we are trying to escape: humor lightens dark moments; we learn to laugh at ourselves; and a different slant on The Real allows us to see differently.
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| What do you choose to believe? ~ ~ Click on image to enlarge ~ ~ (Photo credit: Pearls Before Swine, Stephan Pastis, 11/04/23) |
I was thinking about this a few weeks ago after I read Pearls Before Swine: Rat revealed how he uses select Bible verses to judge others and avoid feeling bad. Rat's question to Goat -- "Is there another way to read the Bible?" -- might be asked of us in a more general way: "Is there another way to read this situation?"
As my mind wandered, I thought back on Sammy Davis' comedic routine on the Rowan and Martin show of the late 1960s: "Here comes the judge!" (Click on the link to see Sammy.) It was a light-hearted way to look at judges, judging, and decisions.
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| How often do you play the "Blame Game"? (Photo credit: The Blame Game, Free by the Sea) |
I wonder if the harshness I experience in this world can be attributed to how others -- and I -- judge others? Maybe our Blame Game creates an atmosphere where we are always watching -- and waiting -- for Scapegoats, The Fall Guy, or He (She) Did It.
We have so many ways to describe The Other and The-Problems-They-Created!
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| What skills have you developed to listen -- and not judge? (Photo credit: What is Active Listening and How Can You Improve This Skill?, Coursera) |
As I listen to the comedian or return to the Comics, I find that I relax and tune in with a different mindset and heart. I slowly smile, chuckle or laugh once I identify with the situation and the punch line.
Though we all have a Judge-Inside who wants to come out, maybe our challenge this week is to relax and listen with a blame-free attitude:
- Ready to hear differently;
- Waiting for the punch line... a twist on The Real; and,
- Willing to laugh at ourselves and our "Here-Comes-The-Judge" moments.
What skills have you developed to listen and not judge?
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| Larry Gardepie (click on link for website) |
Great topic Larry, thank you! I think our built in negativity bias helps us avoid danger and also seems to keep us separate or for me also avoid feeling what’s really here now. If I stop and breathe for a few minutes things open up into a better “view.”
ReplyDeleteSo true! Stop, breathe, and become open to a better view!
DeleteI wonder if the "negativity bias" was a pre-historic coping mechanism to protect ourselves from physical harm (freeze, flight...)? We now use those same coping traits to protect ourselves from mental or emotional pain?