The ability to be inclusive in all realms is important for a range of different reasons. Choosing to be open to everyone from an emotional standpoint is a strong contributing factor to both our connection with others but also the understanding and acceptance of ourselves. With the world being so diverse and with an incredibly vast array of different cultures, religions, environments, and people, it is inevitable that we will meet people whose ideologies, concepts, and way of life will be dissimilar to our own. However, in all facets of life and within all people, there are elements of beauty, intrigue, compassion, excitement, love, and interest, as well as an assortment of others that could play a part in our lives.

I was watching my children play with a young boy this afternoon, and just how open and honest children are towards each other is fascinating in itself. Yet, one of the most fascinating things I see is how innocent and uninfluenced they can be. This can work in both a positive and, unfortunately, negative aspect. But fundamentally, all children have no preconceived notion of interaction, accept all, and are always inclusive, initially anyway.

The exclusivity that is formulated, superiority-type complexes, and feelings or beliefs of being better than each other are traits that are developed over time, with external influences contributing significantly in many cases to this outcome. Throughout my life, I have been exposed to a range of different walks of life: from drug addicts to multimillion-dollar high-level professionals, from housing project families to incredibly wealthy old money. Although the status and available resources contribute greatly to the outcome of each person's walk of life, it is still very obvious to see who consciously always maintains an open and inclusive view on life, versus a closed and exclusive view. This is prevalent throughout all levels of societal status, or perceived societal status, anyhow.

Being open-minded and inclusive of all walks of life, regardless of status or situation, is a contributing factor in our search for happiness. If we choose to close our minds to certain groups or types of people because of preconceived ideas about who we believe they are and who we believe we are in contrast, then we choose to restrict our potential in terms of understanding the world and life around us. If we choose to shut off a potential source of growth, we hinder the potential human we could become and restrict the potential happiness we could achieve.

“Infinite diversity in infinite combinations…
symbolizing the elements that create truth and beauty.” - Commander Spock, Star Trek

Thanks,

Dean