Written by Kristin Barton Cuthriell, M.Ed, MSW, LCSW
I can’t believe that she said that to me. Do you know what he did, after all that I have done for him? She never has a nice thing to say to me.
The only person that you have control to change is you. You can’t change another person unless he or she wants to change. When someone acts cruel or unkind, you can allow it to ruin your day, your week, or even your year, or you can rise above, refusing to give the offender that much power. It is your choice.
Eleanor Roosevelt once said that no one can make you feel inferior without your permission. Someone can throw insults at you all day long, but you decide whether you want to catch them and make them your own. Will you let them stick? If the insult were a ticket, would you take it? Most judgements and insults are more about the person delivering them than they are about the one on the receiving end. You decide if you want to accept an insult. It is up to you.
People are often unreasonable, illogical and self-centered;
Forgive them anyway.
If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives;
Be kind anyway.
If you are successful, you will win some false friends and some true enemies;
Succeed anyway.
If you are honest and frank, people may cheat you;
Be honest and frank anyway.
What you spend years building, someone could destroy overnight;
Build anyway.
If you find serenity and happiness, they may be jealous;
Be happy anyway.
The good you do today, people will often forget tomorrow;
Do good anyway.
Give the world the best you have, and it may never be enough;
Give the world the best you’ve got anyway.
You see, in the final analysis, it is between you and your God;
It was never between you and them anyway.
The original version of this poem was written by Dr. Kent Keith. It has since been attributed to Mother Teresa.
Be the best that you can be regardless of the actions of others.
Do not allow another to negatively impact your journey.
And here we are again at the basis of it all; it’s up to us to say yes or no to our actions and responses to the actions of others.
It is often difficult to do, but it is up to us. Thank you for reading and commenting.
This is so true and so challenging at the same time. But it is a challenge that stretches and grows our hearts, right? What a wonderful post; thanks for sharing!
Yes. Thank you for your comments.
Hi,
So very true, it’s like the old saying (in Australia anyway)
“Sticks and stones can break your bones, but names will never hurt you.”
My Mum taught me that at a very young age, the teachers also in early days at school said exactly the same thing, it actually stopped a lot of bullying back in the day, a very long time ago now. 🙂
It takes a lot of emotional maturity and confidence, which most children and many adults do not have, to not take the verbal attacks of others personally. This is a skill that can be practiced. I am continually working on it. Thank you so much for commenting.
Yes, I believe this can be attributed to Mother Teresa. It’s too late for me (I take everything personally) but I have always taught my kids that if someone says something hurtful to them, it is because they are hurting themselves. It would have made a huge difference in my life if someone had taught me the same thing.
Words often hurt. I agree that it is important to teach our children that when others put them down, it is the one full of the put-downs that is really unhappy. Confident people don’t usually go around putting others down to lift themselves up. Thank you for commenting.
I think I find “Do not allow another to negatively impact your journey” to be the hardest, I have a tough time letting things go even though I know I would be much better off if I did. How strange is that?
Thank you for you comments. I don’t think it is strange at all. I think letting go is difficult for us all, especially if you have been really hurt. It sometimes takes a long time and a lot of reminders not to allow the past to control your present and future. Many times people get caught up in trying to change the past, which can’t be done. Moving on involves an acceptance piece too. Not accepting that a particular offense was okay, but accepting that it happened and that there can still be joy in life if you find it and let it in.
So true! I agree, accepting that it happened doesn’t mean you agree with what they said/how they acted…
Totally agree!
Thank you for commenting. Have a great day.
So true! And yet this is such a hard lesson for some people to learn,
It is difficult. Thank you for commenting.
We must be the creators of our own reality. Excellent post!
I agree. Thank you, Vince. I look forward to reading more of your blog.