Perspective?

The NYC Subway system during rush hour is a madhouse.

Consider this: People passively aggressively fighting for space all the while trying to ignore the distractions that come with the territory. Most are on the way to work, but that doesn’t stop the crying child or the Bible-thumping “pastor” from distracting us.

When people fight for space, they rely on one move, the nudge and stare.  You’ll nudge someone and glare at an open spot on the train. This movement transcends all languages. In fact, one could call it a part of the natural language of NYC.

We nudge and glare to get things done.

This morning, I almost nudged and glared at a kid that was lingering in the middle of the train.  I assumed that there was a space next to him because when I looked, I saw space.

What I didn’t see was the older gentleman sitting with a walker in front of him, blocking the kid from moving in.

After I got over my initial shame, I thought about the reminder the universe just gave me. It was a reminder that our snap judgments are often based on snapshots at any given moment.

Perspective is valuable, but we have to fight against our assumption that it is the reality.