New Glasses

Everybody has a point of view. These points of view are shaped by our life experiences as well as experiences of people that are close to us, not to mention the media on the peripheral. Consider these experiences to be your "glasses". The way you see the world around you is a direct reflection of what is on the inside of you. I had the opportunity this evening to learn more about this concept first hand.

I was checking in at a hotel in Tucson. As I was checking in, a guy came up beside me at the counter. He was not menacing or anything, but he was definitely in my personal space and looking directly at my ID and credit card as the front desk agent was checking me in. I reached across the counter and turned the ID and card over and asked him to step back a little. He then unleashed a torrent of comments about race and how I, as a white man, had only done that because he was black. Now, if you know me at all, you know just how ridiculous this is. I could not believe that I was being blamed for all that was wrong with this country, racially anyway, by this man. All I wanted was for some random person not to be looking over my transaction which does involve personal identification and financial records. I really could care less what color that person is. Personal space is personal space and he should have stayed out of mine.

The lesson I learned here is this. It became instantly evident that this man sees with his "race glasses". While I was seeing with my "personal space glasses". Everything this man sees has racial implications, you can be sure. Taking an instance so far out of context is the biggest sign of what type of "glasses" someone is wearing. Losing control of your emotions at the drop of a hat like that and threatening to "beat someones @$$ if they were back in college for that" is a tell tale sign of how this man in particular views his circumstances. Let us take a look at this kind of thinking:

1: Blame- He sees what is happening to him, or around him, as the fault of someone else. This person will not take responsibility for his own actions.
2: Narcissism- He thinks this is all about him. And of course, only the way he feels (which is a result of how he sees things) is important here. No other valid points of view are relevant at all, they are not even heard.
3: Racism- Somewhere in this mans past, there is a sad event that took place. He now views every situation in relation to that one (perhaps multiple) incidents from earlier in his life.
4: Incompetence- The kind of outburst displayed this evening can be partially attributed to this persons incompetence in other areas of his life. Perhaps he thinks he should be the one getting the big pay raise or whatever, just like this situation, he is incompetent in the area of emotional control. There is always somebody out-doing him.

In conclusion, try to take notice what kind of "glasses" you are wearing. If you don't like the things you are seeing, or even worse, everyone around you is running like rats from a ship away from you, it is probably time to change the glasses. It is really easy to do with a little effort. Just get into the routine of learning more about how you want to see things. In the example above, this man could take a look at some of the monumental positive changes in race relations this country has experienced in the last 2 decades alone. It's my belief that the passing of each day, people are getting negative issues of race out of their "glasses". It is less important now as it ever has been. Are there exceptions to the rule? You bet. So what, don't see the world through their glasses. Am I a bit to ahead of what is really going on out there? Maybe, but I will tell you this - race has no part of how I view people or what they do or how they do it. I don't even see the racism because I refuse to let it into my life. If you wish to eradicate racism, then refuse to see it. Simple as that.

I hope this was helpful to someone out there. I know for me, it was an invaluable lesson to learn. Whenever you talk to someone, try to figure out what kind of "glasses" they're wearing. I am a little sad for this man, he gets to wake up tomorrow and the rest of his life with those glasses on. Sad, sad, sad. Pray for that man, I know I am.