Someone Else’s Shoes
Letter from the editor
I was walking towards the long Manco and Manco line that spanned the Ocean City boardwalk when I began to feel my heart pounding with anxiety. It was the first warm day of spring and the boards were packed. I was with my son, now an adult with autism and I knew how excited he was to get pizza on the boardwalk.
I also had been his mom long enough to know that crowds often overwhelm him and if I thought waiting in line was tough for me, I am reminded how incredibly challenging it can be for Jamie. With my motherly instincts on high alert, I quickly found a seat at the counter and sat him there while I waited for pizza.
Inevitably, someone in line made a nasty remark about my action. The mother lion in me was tempted to roar, “You have no idea what I’m dealing with!” But as I opened my mouth to speak, I quietly reminded myself that I have no idea what she is dealing with either. More likely than not, she is navigating her own set of life challenges that I can not see. Instead, I remained quiet and smiled politely.
The saying goes, “play the hand you’re dealt.” Those hands often feel like worldly sized burdens that so many of us quietly walk around carrying every day. Cancer, financial stress, marital issues, illness, mental health, you name it! We all carry something that the outside world can not see at face value. Because we often keep these things to ourselves and navigate quietly, it is so easy to feel alone in our struggles.
If everyone wore a t-shirt with their issues written on them, how different would we respond to one another? For instance, if that woman in the pizza shop was wearing a shirt that said “My mom just passed” or “I have stage 4 cancer” I probably would have hugged her instead of being tempted to snap at her. What if my shirt said “Severe autism, might have a major meltdown any second”? I highly doubt the woman would have made the mean comment about us grabbing a seat at the counter. If we could see one another’s pain it would evoke compassion and empathy, which changes everything!
Empathy is the capacity to understand or feel what another person is experiencing from within their frame of reference. Put simply, it’s seeking to understand what it must be like to walk in another person’s shoes for a day. It’s what sets us apart and raises us to our best version of ourselves. Roots of empathy grow beautiful blossoms of kindness.
Kindness and empathy are the common denominator in all of the nearly one hundred hometown heroes we have featured In Shore Local.
Shore Local Newsmagazine strives to shine a light on all the good in our community.
Within our pages you will find some of the best people, places, events and businesses that make our area wonderful.
Peace
& Love,
Cindy
