Do you have any idea about the number of people you’ll meet in your lifetime? Some say 10000 and some 80000! That’s right, a lot! If you exclude the ones in your adolescence, you are still left with thousands. That’s a thousand times you can be nice. Thousand opportunities to be kind. Thousand chances to be a better human. Yet, we somehow screw up and strike off each moment that could have been better utilized. 

Ok, so not everyone is out there to be cruel and malicious : to make someone’s life miserable or worse, go kill someone. Alright, you are not that person hence you lie in the neutral zone of human goodness. You have scope to slide to the good end. But, how do you get there? Do good deeds, right? Help the poor, needy and those in distress – the good human framework. Now, we know all of that and we might be doing some of those so that makes us good. Umm…sure, but there is so much more required to push us into the good bucket. While all our initial thoughts to get there puts emphasis on ‘actions’, what about ‘words’? One of the most powerful elements to guide, help influence and hurt. If you do good deeds and somehow find ways to run your mouth and cause discomfort to atleast one person, then you are not doing it right, and because of that you are pushed back to neutral and all the way to the bad zone. 

People can be mean. Sometimes deliberate and other times unintentional. You may think you have a great sense of humour and by vomiting words you believe you make people smile. As long as you don’t touch upon people’s appearances and challenges, your humour is fine, I guess? Maybe, maybe not… Unless you make money out of making fun of others, let’s not try to emulate that. And, it’s not just about appearances, it’s about a lot of other things. 

We become mean when we pass judgements in front of others (behind their back, is another category, all together). I am referring to the ones who don’t think or empathise. What might be a casual conversation might be laden with harsh judgy statements that silently hurt and shatter people. Some retort immediately but many others silently dwell on the pain and nobody notices… nobody realizes their wrong-doings. We teach kids to be kind (most of them) but when we grow up, somehow our situations (or inborn nature) moulds us in ways that are plain mean. We say things without thinking. We don’t realize how something small can affect others. How a small comment, suggestion or judgement can break a person. Now if you are thinking, “Hey I am not that person. I have never done that,” your optimism has blinded you.

To err is human. We all, at some point, might have said unpleasant things, especially to your loved ones. While it’s hard to lead a life without a single blemish, we can strive to be wonderful. We can be kind to others. We should think before speaking and lecturing others. If you are not sure whether something you are about to tell someone might hurt them, it’s better to utter nothing. When in doubt, don’t say anything at all. A minute of refrain can go a long way. The fact that you had a doubt itself, is the first indicator to pull back. And, to those with no doubts and absolute confidence, you might want to reevaluate. You have probably done enough damage. So, let’s be kind to one another. It’s a short life. Let’s put some brakes on that tongue of ours. 

I hope this wasn’t a preachy message. Even if it was, I am sure I didn’t hurt anyone. So, peace.