Black or White
When I was in
elementary school, I got into a major argument with a boy in my class. I have
forgotten what the argument was about, but I have never forgotten the lesson I
learned that day.
I was
convinced that “I” was right and “he” was wrong – and he was just as convinced
that “I” was wrong and “he” was right. The teacher decided to teach us a very
important lesson.
She brought us
up to the front of the class and placed him on one side of her desk and me on
the other. In the middle of her desk was a large, round object. I could clearly
see that it was black. She asked the boy what color the object was. “White,” he
answered.
I couldn’t
believe he said the object was white, when it was obviously black! Another
argument started between my classmate and me, this time about the color of the
object.
The teacher
told me to go stand where the boy was standing and told him to come stand where
I had been. We changed places, and now she asked me what the color of the
object was. I had to answer, “White.”
It was an
object with two differently colored sides, and from his viewpoint it was white.
Only from my side it was black.
Sometimes we need to look at the problem from the other
person’s view in order to truly understand his/her perspective.
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