Not Everything Is Ours to Understand

And the sooner we understand that, the easier our lives will be

Photo by Nathalie Stimpfl on Unsplash

A few years back I stopped at our little French Patisserie in town to grab a latte and while waiting I watched as an older couple came up to order at the counter. When I say older, I’m guessing in their 80’s. Then a younger woman walked in wearing a short skirt, revealing legs that were completely tatted up — her legs were nothing short of a graffiti masterpiece — flamingos, flowers, swirls, words, sunsets, stars, you name it.

I saw the older woman quickly look her up and down and then turn to her husband with a confused look of “I don’t get it!” I had to laugh to myself because of how many times I have thought the same thing.

I had to remind myself that not everything is ours to get!

Whether it was tattoos, face piercings, strange colored hair, the other political party, Black Friday, RV camping, mainstream TV shows like Wheel of Fortune (I know, I know — most of you won’t understand how I could NOT like that show!) people that love cilantro, (this will probably get me some hate mail!) and add to that list, at times even my own behavior and actions, I have a hard time understanding. But looking at the girl’s artful legs today, I realized we don’t need to understand everything or everyone, and we never will — and the sooner we understand that, the easier life can be.

While understanding our fellow man is important so that we can gain empathy and compassion, sometimes understanding is just not possible, but acceptance is. The things we don’t understand can range from minor to major, but no matter what it is, it can be very stressful when we believe we must understand it.

Accepting that we will never know everything, understand everything, or have all the answers is freeing. We become less judgmental, more compassionate, and are more open to change, to new experiences and new opportunities.