Moving Closer to Those We Hate

Hi, welcome back to your Daily Mindfulness. In today's session, I want to share a quote by Abraham Lincoln. So one of my favorite Abraham Lincoln quotes is, "I don't like this, man. I must get to know him." Very simple. "I don't like this, man.

I must get to know him." Our tendency in relationship, especially when we're behind our computer and using our judgmental mind against everything that we're seeing, especially with politics, is to label people as other or having bad qualities or having poor character. And we see something that we don't like, and we use it as an indictment against their character and it just creates more separation. Well, what I like about this quote is that it's actually inviting us to get closer. Saying I don't like this person. Maybe I should get closer to them.

Maybe I should understand them. And it was Brené Brown who said "It's hard to hate people up close." When you get to know a person, when you understand their internal world a bit more, there tends to be more empathy. We see our shared humanity and there's less division and othering. And so as you navigate your own life and your own relationships, notice this tendency, like I don't like this person I need to step away. And what would it be like to shift that to I don't like this person.

Maybe I need to get closer. Thank you for your practice. Let's settle in for today's meditation.