– Tapping into the Best Part of You
It is our guiding heart –
A while ago, I sat next to a gentleman during a 3-hour flight. He was as different from me as someone could be: his skin color, politics, values, social and economic status, and sexual orientation. When I sat down, I saw someone so different from the usual traveler that, for a fleeting moment, I felt offended at having to sit next to him.
We spent the 3-hour flight deeply engaged in a conversation from the heart. He was a fighter and a survivor. After being given a death sentence with 4 months to live, he found a cause to support and a reason to fight. The cause was to prove the doctors wrong, and the fight was for his life. We laughed about the crazy things he did to stay positive and bring joy to his life. We shared a few shed tears as he told me about his twin brother, who lost a similar fight to cancer. We swapped stories of kids and crazy cousins. Challenges and triumphs, and at the end of the flight, we said let’s keep in touch as we exchanged business cards and went our separate ways – basking in the glow of the 3 hours our hearts were our guides, and our souls were fed.
As I reflect on how we connected – we laughed, we cried, and in those three short hours, we grew to know and understand each other as friends. With my heart as my guide, I let go of my prejudices, my judgments, and I let the best of me connect with who he was, not who he appeared to be, when I sat down next to him with my preconceived ideas. That was when the magic began. The magic of seeing someone as they wanted to be seen, without a label, an expiration date, and without judgment.
Each of us has within the power to hurt or the power to heal. Let your heart be your guide as you decide what power you will choose to use today.
Your guiding heart will never lead you astray.
Dr. Joanette Weisse, MD
Dr. Joanette Weisse, MD, is the international best-selling author of the children’s series Giggles in My Heart. Her books teach children how to identify, manage, and understand their emotions and thoughts; and how their behavior may influence them. Dr. Joanette is “Doctor Grammy” to her five adorable grandchildren. She loves reading to them, telling them stories, and helping them discover the joy of books. She is an ER doctor with a big heart and lots of love for all her patients, especially her “little patients.” She lives in upstate New York with her husband Fred on their small farm. For more information and to get some great children’s books go to: https://hartslight.com/
