had a piece all queued up for today, a thing about learning something I knew about someone, something that rocked me back on my heels and made me blink. It was about how we characterize people we know in our minds and are startled when we learn or see something that changes this ideal.
I wrote it early this morning (after waking up and thinking about this person). It was a good piece, having my full emotions and concerns in it. Saved it in drafts and walked with my wife for breakfast. When I got home I looked at it again and realized it was too raw, too descriptive. Most people who know me have heard a hint about what happened and what I saw. Given that, writing at length about it would probably be a bit too much, plastering this on the internet for everyone to see.
And it’s really too bad since it did make a point. Yes, as an example, there is a Robert Raymond that many of you know (and hopefully like). However, there are aspects of me that might not fit into your image of the who I am to you. We have boundaries in our relationship, roles we casually observe, and to violate them would alter your opinion of the who that you see me as. It’s important to understand this – the people and world around you are simply your perception of it – reality is likely something different entirely.
So keep this in mind when you deal with your friends. Something might happen to force you to see them in another light. We operate as if what we see is how things are. Not true, as I have learned.
Eyes open. Mind open.