Why I find it important to be less judgemental
As this lady on the bus decided to cuss at my friend and me because we spoke English in a foreign country, three thoughts floated into my mind. The first one is, “Why is it such a crime, I am a little different than you?” the second one is, “I feel extremely judged for no good reason”, and the third is “I need this to change.” I knew that something else had to be going on in her life for her to rudely lash out at two innocent young girls using public transportation, so I tried to not let it get the best of me. But for some reason, that exact moment was living rent-free in my mind all night.
As I went home, I felt like it was my calling somehow to create a change and be better. I thought maybe about all the times, this has happened to not only my friend and me but people around the world. You can’t escape people’s judgments and prejudice in society but that makes no good excuse for why we all can’t try a little harder including me. I was inspired in a way if you will to be better, and create some sort of change.
Throughout my life, I had this belief that making an impact on the world needed to come from a huge platform, or a billionaire family willing to donate half their savings to end world hunger. While that would be nice, it is not true.
In the past I have dedicated quite a bit of time to attend church volunteer work, volunteering at my local hospital, feeding the homeless, and the list goes on. But those were in a way forced either by my parents or school, for once I felt like I needed to try and evolve on my own. It’s a part of growing up? Struggling to find what I should do to create some sort of impact, my head was spinning in circles, stressing about how I can influence my community without the benefit of a large platform.
Anxiety crept in, and my ideas weren’t good enough. I kept putting myself in a box, creating excuses for why I can’t do it. Until randomly I thought of my mother who always tells me how many excuses I make for myself about why I don’t succeed in different areas of my life, so I rather used that as motivation.
I am my own platform, I can be a platform, I don’t have to be some rich heiress to speak upon kindness and how we should change the world. After all we hear it all the time, I just chose to ignore it because I find it corny. Except those people are right. I have to be the change, there is no other way. I just want the ability to make someone’s day a bit better and never worse just like that night with my friend and me.
Roaming the city of Seoul during my gap year, I have come across so many people in a day just using public transportation. Where they are headed I wonder all the time, maybe to a friend’s house? Funeral? Work? I will never know. But I set out a mission each and every time I stepped out of my grandparent's home, to strike someone’s life by simply being outwardly kind and respectful. So I created a list of possible opportunities in my notes app, reminding me that I can do something small and nice for a stranger. While some might be thinking, respect and being kind is a no-brainer, I come to disagree. I believe in today’s modern world, a lot of us just want to be the coolest, hottest, and best no matter what it takes, and a lot of the time that means losing respect and kindness for one another. Lashing out on strangers, and unfortunately have been a witness to many situations.
Every day there is an opportunity for me and it’s my job to look out for them. I have seen unnecessary hardships brought upon people. There are times when someone has fallen off their bicycle while riding in the city and nobody is there to help them because they are too busy tapping at their phones or don’t care because it’s not them in the situation. Or another instance where I was walking with my grandma down the subway stairs and an older grandma had fallen and been injured badly, but for some reason, my grandma and I were the only ones willing to stop for a minute to help. Thankfully each time I go out does not mean I see a horrible accident. On those days, I take action whether it is complimenting a stranger’s outfit, allowing someone to cut my spot in the bus line, buying someone on the streets a meal. Not every day am I perfect and my acts of respect and kindness might not be the next big thing, but I hope that it has an effect on the people that I have come across these past months, and I hope it only continues to flourish. For a society always only wanting to be on top all the time, hustling for the next big lottery, I hope that my small actions can actually have an effect bigger than we can imagine.
I feel a difference in my own life and the way I see the chance to help my community. I have gained insight into people’s lives and that is I don’t have to be the number one on someone’s list to have an impression on people, and I don’t have to be remembered by my name, but rather take advantage of basic human needs and be on ground zero, because that way is better than just sitting around waiting for my chance to come. When my chances are already here.
