It is considered natural to rise in
defense or take offense when someone offends you. But another response is
possible: Give forgiveness, love and understanding to people that offend you.
Does this sound difficult? Well, it really
is not. Consider this: in the first place, you are offended because you allowed
yourself to be offended. In that state when the offensive emotion has
penetrated the deep recesses of your mind, agitation begins to brew. When you
are agitated, you cannot think with clarity. Forgiveness, love and
understanding, therefore seem impossible and impractical at this time. But what
if you refuse to get offended? Sure enough, there's a way. Try these three easy
steps: 1. Don't respond mindlessly, belligerently. Be aware of the
so-called offensive remarks coming your way. And like a turtle would withdraw
into its shell so that it remains secure, withdraw all defense mechanisms. 2.
Respect the right of the other person to have an opinion, any opinion, that is
different from you. 3. Smile. Accept the reality. Kill the urge to think
'how-dare-you?' and respond instead with an 'aha!'
feeling in you. Wish the person who's trying to offend you all success. Convert
the problem situation into a game. Play it! What if the offender was on Reality
TV with you and the game was 'Who-Barks-Least-Wins?' And the prize money was
worth millions. Play the game in that spirit. Like in any sport, practice makes
perfect. So it is in this. Very soon, after a
few attempts, you will reach a stage where you will be a World Champ and the
peace, joy and bliss, that will follow will be worth more than all the money
there is in the world!
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