The first is humility. Humility amounts to an understanding
that the world is not divided into good and bad people,
but rather it is made up of all manner of individuals,
each broken in their own way, each caught up in the common
human struggle and each having the capacity to do both terrible
and beautiful things.
If we truly comprehend and acknowledge that we are all imperfect creatures,
we find that we become more tolerant and accepting of others’ shortcomings
and the world appears less dissonant,
less isolating, less threatening.
The other quality is curiosity. If we look with curiosity at people
who do not share our values, they become interesting rather than threatening.
As I’ve grown older I’ve learnt that the world and the people in it
are surprisingly interesting, and that the more you look and listen,
the more interesting they become. Cultivating a questioning mind,
of which conversation is the chief instrument, enriches our relationship
with the world. Having a conversation with someone I may disagree
with is, I have come to find, a great,
life embracing pleasure.
~ Nick Cave
with thanks to The Marginalian
by Maria Popova
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