the breakdown of communication

I really don't have much time to write but this subject has been on my mind quite a bit today. I believe that one of the largest problems I have found in my life and many others whom I have had close interactions with is the issue of communication. It seems to me that we all have the ability for good clear communication, however we all seem to miss things here and there which ultimately cause quite the ordeal of issues.

Recently in my life I have had a situation which I truly believe would have ended much different if the other individual and I had better communicated. Meaning that I understood what they wanted and needed, and they understood the same of me. I think this might just be one of the keys to life... If others don't know or can't understand what is going on inside of our hearts and heads then of course things will eventually break down. This applies to so many different aspects of life as well, from a simple relational level, to interpersonal, and even occupational.

I was having a conversation today with a friend which triggered the thoughts in me of what is normal for me is not necessarily normal for someone else, and thus it is a great misdeed of ours to assume or hold everyone to the exact same standard without explanation or questions. Because while it may not make sense to me why someone is interacting with me a certain way, but if I talk to them there is a good chance that they can't understand why I am not tracking the same way. very frequently in my life over the past few weeks I have had multiple individuals talk to me in reference to various subjects where they have spoken with great passion and feeling towards how they "know" things are a certain way. And thus for them to interpret the situation in any other manner than what they already have is absurd, because they already know the answer according to their logic. Which of course to them is true, because it is connected to what they believe. Belief is a situation in which we have placed our value in something or someone to the extent where we don't need to necessarily have to question any longer because we have made it a part of how we live. And frankly put, if we didn't feel certain about our beliefs, we would most likely find a new one. Thus in a situation in which we have already determined the outcome due to our belief, whether correct or not (despite the fact that I personally feel just about everything in life is relative...), we have done nothing but close the door in some regards to communication.

Now I'm not sure if the correct response is tolerance, as many have argued that tolerance is a form of losing ones beliefs and thus opening Pandora's box by the universalism of saying do whatever makes one happy. Not that this is really all that different from how most individuals live already, but rather it would break down their believe that the way they live is far superior to others. So that is a separate issue all together. But, regardless of what one's belief is, without a good base of communication failure is almost inevitable.

So today I have decided to continue in my journey in which I hope deeply I will communicate in the best possible manner I can with everyone in my life. To me this equates to not simply a transparency of who I am and what I believe, but also the vulnerability enough to open who I am to each individual who values me enough to either seek that out from me or those who are simply willing to share this time and space with me. If you are someone I have entrusted please know that you are deeply values and I hope that our communication continues to grow. Blessings.