Although this comes up from time to time, lately it seems there have been several people in our local area that we know that are in trouble with the law. It is a weird feeling because until you hear about civil or criminal charges or allegations against someone, you just assume (or, at least I do) that the person is honestly and morally going about their days. I’m not here to judge – that is certainly not my place. But, it sometimes feels like you have been betrayed by the person. What you thought you knew isn’t correct.
Have you experienced something like this before? Maybe it wasn’t an example where the person ended up being sued or in jail, but maybe you found out someone wasn’t the person you thought they were. I suspect that has happened to most of us, especially the older we are. How did you feel? What, if anything, did you do about it? It can be hard to make these realizations, and I also wonder sometimes if people have any intent of deceiving others. I am sure some do, but again, that probably starts getting into the judgment I don’t believe I should be doing.
Then, of course, if someone can do that to you, you can most certainly deceive others as well. This is the part I feel I can do something about, or, at least my intentions can be transparent. Unfortunately, we probably deceive others even if we don’t mean to do so. But, I can choose to be as intentional and honest with others as I can. If something worrisome is going on, I can be honest about it with others too. All easier said than done, but my overall ask of myself is to be as real with others as I can, and I encourage you do to the same.