Clemency in kindness

I like to think that we all start out with the intention of being kind. We want to make others happy. We desire for the world to be calm and peaceful. 

But the habit of thinking and acting with clemency and kindness is a hard one to develop. We are drawn into whinges, into pointing out negatives in lives, in ideas, in others, in ourselves. 

I suppose this post could be about many things: forgiving, choosing peace, letting go of grievances. But I like the idea of clemency towards ourselves and others. 

Making mistakes is human. Saying the wrong thing, doing the wrong thing.... even believing the wrong thing. All human foibles. The world needs more mercy. I believe seeking to understand rather than seeking to judge is the greatest pathway to happiness. People are rarely cruel or unpleasant as a natural disposition. They have their reasons, journeys and baggage that can make them so. 

If someone carrying a suitcase arrived at a station hot, flustered and annoyed would you:

A/ ignore the suitcase and berate them for their annoyance

B/ immediately dismiss the dimensions of the suitcase as insignificant

Or would you:

C/ ask them if the suitcase was heavy, of the journey was hard

D/ listen to their story

E/ carry their case for a while

We do not need to tolerate unkindness or unpleasantness BUT we can show clemency and kindness. We can judge a little less, learn a little more, assist a little faster and condemn with less haste. 

We CAN be kind. We do not need to do this to the detriment of ourselves but we can choose to reserve judgement. We can choose to give the benefit of the doubt to those who slip. We can choose to NOT contribute to the perpetual cycle of unkindness that this all, ultimately, stems from. 

We can say “it’s ok! We are all human! We all get it wrong!”