Don’t expect anyone to understand your journey, especially if they’ve never walked your path.
I found a useful reminder when looking for inspiration this week (FB thought for the day page). I think this works both ways in fact and links to that old saying about not judging others without walking a mile in their shoes.
We can never fully know or understand someone else’s perspective because we are all totally individual, unique human beings. What we can do however is keep an open mind and heart and learn to really listen and connect both to our inner most thoughts and feelings to develop self-awareness of our reactions to others and their stories and to really actively listen to others when they are speaking to us.
What’s the first question that we generally ask each other when meeting? ‘How are you?’ and how often do we respond openly to that question with a fully truthful answer? How often do we expect the person asking the question to really want to know the real, in-depth answer?
Chaplains are good listeners. We are human and don’t always get it right but we do practise active listening and are non-judgmental listeners who want to hear your story and be part of your journey, however small a part that works for you. We can’t solve problems but we can help gain a different perspective and sometimes sign-post to other services or resources that can also help.
Spot the chaplain wandering around the duck pond and surrounding areas on dry Thursday lunchtimes between 12md and 2pm.
In the meantime, on the rainy Thursdays, or if you don’t manage to catch up with me outside, as always you can contact us via email on info@mitechaplaincy.com where you can request a call-back, or you are very welcome to call me directly on my mobile: 07526 378529 either to chat or to arrange a time to meet.
Debbie.
We also have a range of resources on our web-site including some that are more specific to the Covid-19 outbreak and some that help in dealing with stress: https://mite.org.uk
If you prefer you can easily keep in touch with us on social media:
Facebook: @mitechaplaincy
Twitter: @mitesthwarr
