Another Point Of View

This year is going by too quick already. Valentine's Day was great except for the horrible cold I was fighting at the time. Mike and I went out to dinner and I don't think I tasted half the food because my nose was so stuffy. But it was wonderful just being with him. Mike always has a way of making me feel like everything will be ok and I feel incredibly loved by him. Here is a picture of the flowers he got me for Valentine's Day.

I think this is one of my favorite arrangements he has gotten me. Not too big or too small. It is just simple and classy. I got him a gift card for a massage because he always likes a good massage. Me, I could take it or leave it, but I'm usually not too fond of strangers touching me.

Near the end of February Mike and I went to the Alton Brown Live show. For those of you who don't know, Alton Brown is a celebrity chef who has multiple television shows and who is known for explaining the science behind creating dishes. What I did not know before we went to the show is that he also sings and plays the guitar. His show was full of him singing, telling stories, and giving quirky food demonstrations. It was a lot of fun! The only thing I wish he did differently was give out samples of his cooking to the audience. By the end of the show Mike and I's mouths were literally watering from the smell of the pizza he made. Then again, it would probably be difficult to cook and deliver samples an entire audience. Here are a few pictures I took at the show. They are not the best quality, but you get the idea.

In February I also finished a picture I had been working on for Mike.

I really wish I had more time to draw or that I was faster at it. I have so many people I want to draw pictures for because I love making people happy by creating something for them.

Now that you are up to date on my life, I wanted to write about something that has been on my mind recently. I am not always the best at maintaining relationships since I am so shy and awkward most of the time. So it is interesting to me when I try to look at myself from another person's point of view. I wonder if my strangeness translates into ambivalence or even contempt to another person. I feel like I try to be kind and friendly most of the time, but maybe it doesn't come off that way? I think it is important to look at the world through other people's eyes because if you don't you will always be blinded by your own biases. But taking another person's point of view is not as easy as it may seem. For one thing, you might see some things about yourself that you don't like. Things you have turned a blind eye to because you don't want to see them. For another thing, you may feel the other person's pain. That can help you gain a better understanding, but of course pain is never fun. However, possibly the most dangerous thing about looking at yourself through another person's point of view is that you can loose touch with everything you thought you knew about yourself. You thought you were nice, but maybe your not. You thought you were strong, but you don't look so strong. You thought you could handle this, but perhaps you are not so capable.

It's at this point that it no longer benefits you to take another view. You have to remember your fundamental beliefs about yourself or you will start to believe all the negative things people say about you. You have to know that just because someone says it or believes it doesn't make it true. You have to stick to what your truth is. Otherwise, you will end up hurting yourself just as much as the negative people do. In other words, don't loose yourself while trying to find another.