by Alexandria Francis

Created on: July 14, 2010

"To judge or not to judge?"...That is the question. Where do we draw the line between mere observation and judgement? It's in our imperfect human nature to pass judgement towards what we see, whether it's good or bad, consciously or subconsciously. The trouble with that is, we're usually only judging the surface of the situation. Rarely do we take into account all that took part in creating these "monsters" we cast our stones at. On the other hand, rarely do we truly know the heart or motives of those we idolize and put up on a pedestal for some popularized trivial accomplishment.

The society we live in today has become so obsessed with freedom of expression and voicing our own opinions, that, even though these freedoms are precious and help define us as individuals, we often forget we don't always need an opinion. Sometimes it's important to just observe a situation and accept it for what it is. Not everything needs to be labeled or categorized. We don't always need to pick a side or point a finger. Even though it may not seem like it, the petty judgements we pass on a daily basis put added stress on our subconscious psyche. To see things as they are is to put oneself at a higher state of consciousness. Coming to realize all of this will actually help free our minds from negative thoughts and help us to stay more objective. Now doesn't that sound nice? Good.Life is stressful enough, people. Why add to it?

 Obviously, unless you live in a Buddhist monastery, there will come a time each day where judgement is required. It has been estimated that the average person makes as many as 1,000 decisions per day. Debilitating, huh? With so many decisions to make a day, it's impossible to survive without using one's better judgement. The judgements we make each day can, at the very least, improve or deteriorate our quality of life and greatly effect the lives of those around us. The ability to make intelligent judgements is a precious gift and is part of what makes us human. It is not a tool to inflate the ego, as it is so often used to do.

 The art of balanced judgement boils down to a couple things most of us learned in kindergarten: 1). Do not judge someone until you've walked a mile in their shoes; 2). Mind your own business.

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