In union there is strength.
~Aesop

There were a number of different quotes that I looked over this evening, trying to find one that best conveyed what it was I was wanting to say. Most of them were quite a bit longer. The problem was the longer they got the more specific they seemed to get. To be honest, they often headed in directions I wasn’t all that interested in heading.

Then I found this one – it’s short and to the point, and yet it still covers all the bases.

What is it about being around other people, about striving together, that changes us? I read a fascinating article that I found this evening when I was looking for my quote. Now, it is a bit dense and from a religious perspective, but it’s an interesting read if you’re willing to wade through. What I found intriguing about it is how it echoed in many ways the manner in which I’ve come to approach people.

I get along with people fairly well. Very rarely do I come across someone who I have an initial negative response to – but it does happen from time to time. When it does, it always bothers me, so I’ve taken up the habit of tracing down what it is exactly that causes the response.

I’ve come to the personal realization (an aspect of which is also covered in the article) that if there is something that bothers me, it is because there is some aspect of it that is calling out to some part of me. So I pay attention – because as I learn what it is that bothers me, I have opportunity to see that aspect of myself. Through that discovery, I can take action to address that issue within myself.

This also works in the positive fortunately :D When I see an aspect in someone that I admire, I can trace that back to its root as well. Then I can nurture that trait, giving it more attention, and slowly discover how to help it flourish.

I need the people who bother me – because they force me to face the things I may have hidden from myself. I need people who inspire me – because they give me opportunity to discover the good things I will come to treasure in my life. I need other people – to help me see myself.

Thank you – to all the people I have meet, to all the people I know, to all the people I treasure in my life. Your simple presence has allowed me to see the things I have grown accustomed to, and therefor miss. To all of my family, blood-kin and chosen – Thank you, and I love you.