I was riding my bike to the library. On the way, an elderly man stopped me and complained to me that I was riding on the sidewalk.
Every now and then, I receive criticism or a comment. When this happens, I usually feel that the other party’s statements hurt me or annoy me even when they do not contain offensive content but are purely criticism.
In situations where the offending party uses an unkind tone or words, my feelings are stronger. On the other hand, when this is the case, it is easier for me to justify to myself why I was offended, and this is “easier” for me in some places.
I usually get this feeling from strangers. When I think about it objectively, I realize that this is not an optimal situation, since there are a significant number of unkind people in the world (sometimes they are nice but are perceived as unkind in the same situation). If there is indeed truth in what the other party said and he conveyed it in a polite and respectful manner, there is no reason for me to be offended. The obvious thing to do is to accept his words and apologize. But even when this is the case, the same feeling accompanies me for several days until it passes completely.
Parts of Keren Peles’ song, “Me Too” really speak to me on this subject, for example: “Like you, if someone throws a bad comment at me, I feel bad all day, it’s just a smile of concealment.”
It could be that I’m just a very sensitive person and things like this get to my heart. Right now, it’s hard for me to understand why this happens, or how to release these feelings when they come. I’m aware of these feelings of mine and also know that they pass with time. I want to know how to control it and how to accept criticism from strangers in a better way. When I receive criticism from people close to me, on the other hand, I usually accept it with understanding and am not hurt by it.
In the meantime, my way of working on this is practice, not that I try to get into these situations, but traveling the world brings me into contact with these situations in greater numbers than in my daily routine.
I wish for myself to know how to accept criticism from strangers when it is genuine and constructive, and on the other hand, to know how to release hard feelings when I receive hurtful and empty messages.
I wish for myself to make sure to express myself in a respectful and caring way when I pass on criticism, whether to strangers or to my relatives.
I wish for all of us to be nice to each other, smile at each other, and spread only good things! It certainly won’t hurt.