I just got some bad news. My dad was admitted into the hospital.
Through the process of getting information from my sister, I found myself having to ask "the obvious", but I'm also not there, so I don't have an understanding of what is happening. All I have is what my sister told me.
I had to reaffirm some of the information, because, of course, either I didn't understand what my sister was saying, or I didn't understand what she meant about not calling my dad (which I would know) after she sent me his hospital and room info.
I'm not saying this to pick on Tammie - some of this goes back to the days of spitting popcorn seeds across the room (yeah, you had to have been there).
I'm pointing out that in this 900+ mile gap, she is trying to relay information to me, and I'm trying to make sure I understand everything, yet when people are within a few feet of each other, they can't take the time to ask a simple question or take a moment to see how someone is doing.
Too many people have become so caught up in themselves that they don't realize that something has happened right before their eyes.
A person has had a joyous occasion in their lives, but someone doesn't know because they're too busy to ask. A person has had a sick relative, but someone doesn't care because it wasn't their relative. A person has had something happen in their life, but someone wouldn't know because gone are the days of stopping for a moment while shopping to say "How are you" with sincerity.
I recently talked to someone who told me of how they knew someone who had a particular time in a half-marathon. I commented how that seemed fast, based on my brother's times and goals that he has for his running.
The sad part was when this other person said they didn't know that I had that connection.
It's sad because anyone who has asked me about my new lifestyle will hear me talk about how my brother got me hooked on "My Fitness Pal", and I almost always talk about his marathon running.
I guess this person didn't hear me or didn't care.
If we stop, put our cellphones, iPods, Tablets, etc away, and look someone in the eyes, and ask them "how are you", and wait for a response, what do you think would happen?
Would we find out something about that other person?
Would we find out something about ourselves?
Give it a try.
