Judging a Book by its Cover

Why do we judge each other based on what we see on the outside? We have no idea what is going on inside, we have no idea what has happened to that person before coming in contact with us and yet we take one look and think we do know.

I have been guilty of it. When I first met Walter, my husband, he was coming in to interview for a landscaping job. He was meeting with the General Manager as he walked by my office. In my mind when you come to an interview you always put forward your best self. You do your hair, put on your best outfit in order to make a good impression. However, he came in with ripped jeans and a t-shirt that had a psychotic happy face on it which said have a psychotic day. He was also wearing a worn baseball cap over disheveled long hair that went to his waist. When he was hired I was shocked and the General Manager said to me that I should not judge a book by its cover. You see, what I did not know was that he had come dressed to work, he was hoping that he would be hired on the spot and could go out to site immediately.

I did not know this, there was no way I could've. It challenges me to think back to all of the times I may have written someone off because of their looks, their clothes and missed an opportunity to meet someone who was amazing. I had to put away my judgements in order to see who Walter really was and as I got to know him I realized how amazing he is and I am blessed that he married me.

This also brought up into my mind the other opportunities I miss. If I am focused on my life issues or my problems I sometimes forget there is a whole world of people out there that have issues and problems too. I sometimes miss opportunities to possibly help them by sharing what I am going through and how I get from one day to the next. Instead, I stop posting and squirrel myself away in my little cocoon to focus on me and get everything squared away with me so I can go back to normal. I need to break this bad habit. It is in the times when we are struggling that I think we can help others the most. We all face times that are hard which cause us grief and increase our level of anxiety, yet many of us refrain from talking about it thinking that it makes us look weak or diminished in some way. In all honesty, people who can share about their struggles are actually courageous and I admire that courage in them.

I stopped posting when we were staging our house because I was overwhelmed. Then once we sold it we had to pack and move, then unpack. We were also evacuated due to fires and we had health issues we were also facing. Once we got settled in I made a plan, but realized I forgot to consider that our family would want to spend time with us and with COVID it was interesting meeting a bit of family here and there. The next thing you know it is Christmas and we are swamped with everything Christmas. Then in January, I became ill, COVID chest cold and sinus infection all in one. NOT FUN! I could have taken the time to post, but because I felt overwhelmed and was so focused on me being in a better place I didn't. All of these things made me anxious and concerned about what the future would hold. I have realized I need more tools in my tool belt when dealing with anxiety and I am so excited about a webinar coming up that will help me. If this speaks to you, I encourage you to join me by clicking the link below. I am hoping that by planting seeds of hope I will be able to walk through my future struggles with you and who knows it may just help someone else.​

https://www.noonestandsalone.net/events-1/seeds-of-hope-webinar