I have been taking some bold steps lately. I reached out to someone I barely know for a visit and a chat. I am motivated because I want to get to know this person better and it is an opportunity for me to practice sharing some principle aspects of the Baha'i Faith. I am delighted as this person is a music enthusiast and we will listen to what they have written and composed! As much as I appreciate the acceptance of my request to visit with them I see that in building a friendship, I must put my own agenda aside and embrace who this person is, discover what they love and listen to their story. The practice of tolerance helps me to be curious about this person and open to appreciate the differences that exist between us. It also helps me with my existing friendships. How dull and droll the world would be if we were all the same! Even though there are things that irritate me and frustrate me about what others may say and do, tolerance calls me to be patient and forgiving. I am humbled as I try to remember on such occasions that these characteristics of people are so agitating because they manifest in me and I am not proud of that. Thinking in this way has the immediate physical effect of softening my countenance and opening my heart. I realise that I must take the time to remember this so that I may trigger this reaction more often. Prejudices come up so instantaneously and completely grip my mind and thoughts leading me in a negative direction. Closely followed by that is my behaviour - the expression on my face, the tone of my voice and my body language. I need to devise a catchy and short mantra that commands my mind to focus on peoples' good qualities, to put the spotlight on them and keep that in my line of sight. This is the work that unity requires me to do all the time. It is difficult and monotonous as it must be done continually but like with everything else when I strengthen this muscle it will become an instant reaction. Making new friends, maintaining those that I am privileged to have, takes work every day. It is like tending a garden in my heart. Cultivating anything beautiful takes time and systematic effort to look past what I would like to be different and learning to love it as it is.
This is the work we must do every day. When we become aware of our own attitudes and prejudices as such it helps us to put them aside and makes us much more tolerant of the foibles of others. And then life gets a whole lot richer.