12-13-20 Everybody’s Gotta Plate

Quote: “Maybe you think someone doesn’t have a lot on their plate compared to you.  But maybe their plate is smaller than yours, and doesn’t have a lot of room to begin with.  Or maybe their plate is paper, and their flimsy paper plate can’t hold as much as your study ceramic plate can.  Or maybe their plate was broken, and is now held together with glue.”

I had to read that quote over and over 5 times just to let all the truthbombs sink in!

What an amazing truth that each and everyone of us is so different.  We were never meant to be cookie cutters, made from the same mold.  How boring life would be if we were!  We each look different, talk different, and act different. Extrovert, introvert, Latina, Asian, man, woman, child, elderly.  It’s what makes life interesting!  Variety is the spice of life.

But one thing we often forget to take into consideration when we mingle with people is the hand each person was dealt.  Divorce, single parenting, adoption, death, loss, relocating, abuse, religious, dysfunctional… and everything in between. This quote reminds us that while we are each served up a plate, our plates are different.  Some are small, some are big.  Some are flimsy, like a paper plate.  Others are sturdy, like a ceramic plate.  Some plates are currently broken in pieces.  Some are barely held together with glue.

Bottom line is – you don’t know what kind of plate the people that you interact with have.  So be careful.

What if your screaming, swearing, or unkind words transports a person back to the trauma of their childhood?  What if your constant rejection of them sends them back to years of counseling?  What if your behaviors toward a stranger, who is literally hanging by a thread, pushes them to the edge?  We have to be careful!  We have to be others focused instead of self focused.

That doesn’t mean we walk on eggshells or worry about every little thing we say.  No, it means we become aware of the fact that we don’t know what other people are going through.  We need to be kind.  We must choose our words carefully.  1 Corinthians 13:4a says, “Love is patient, love is kind…”  Plain and simple.

Don’t compare your plate with anyone else’s and don’t judge other people’s plates if they are different than yours.  You worry about your own plate.  Focus on creating the most beautiful, sturdy plate you can.  You’ve only got one plate.  So focus on being the best version of yourself you can, despite the ups and downs life has dealt you.  It’s your plate – be you!

But be kind.