Where They're Coming From

(If you take offense at my ending the title of this blog with a preposition, feel free to call the Grammar Brute Squad, but keep in mind that I've been one of their favorite snitches for years.  They're apt to show me leniency for such a minor offense, especially since it's in my own blog.  In fact, they might even come after you for trying to rat me out.  The Grammar Brute Squad is funny like that.)

I had a hard run yesterday.  This blog is going to be short, mostly because I had a hard run yesterday.  You see, I'm actually writing this blog yesterday.  It will post today, because that's when I'm going to schedule it to be posted, but I'm writing it yesterday, which is actually my today, but by tomorrow it will be my (and your) yesterday. 

Hmm.  That made no sense.  I'm too tired to try again.

So I had a hard run yesterday.  After I finished my eight miles, I started cooling down by walking around the park at a VERY slow pace.  My body ached so badly (what they don't tell you is that it doesn't really hurt until you stop running) that I couldn't really walk any faster...unless I had to because something was chasing me.  But nothing was chasing me.  So I walked slowly.

As I was walking, this lady passed me.  I wondered what she thought of me (because I've been known to be overly self-conscious from time to time...or most of the time).  I was walking slowly, yet completely out of breath, hot, and sweaty.  I wondered if perhaps she thought that I was just pathetically out of shape (she probably didn't think this, and probably didn't even notice me, but I always wonder).  After all, she just saw me walking.  She didn't know I'd just spent the previous hour and 45 minutes or so running my legs off.  Uh, not literally.

It made me think that it's often too easy to judge people when we don't have any clue about where they're coming from (go ahead...summon the Grammar Brute Squad...I dare you).  We get upset with rude people.  We look down on someone whose behavior is self-destructive.  We judge based on appearances and first impressions.  We don't stop and think about why they might be looking or acting that way.  We don't stop and think about what might have happened to them before we've encountered them.  We don't think about people's stories.

At least I don't. 

But you're probably a better person than I am.

And I'm going to just go ahead and schedule this to post tomorrow...which is actually my today...and go to bed now so you can read this after I've woken up again on my tomorrow...which is your today.  ...though right now I feel as though I could sleep about a year.