Why are some people so critical?
“I can’t believe second place is not good enough!” screamed the distraught pageant princess as she angrily rummaged through her mom’s dresser. As she fitfully grabbed handfuls of colourful socks and bedazzled t-shirts and threw them violently into the air, she sobbed. For all the judgmental words her mom earlier flogged her with kept playing on repeat in her mind.
“Tara! Why do you always look so ugly? Have you even learned how to brush your hair properly? Your catwalk is terrible! Stop eating so much food or you are never going to fit into your dress. Why are you so lazy? Practice your routine more! Why are you such a failure? You are never going to be good enough to win a pageant!”
The little girl shrieked and covered her face in frustration. Not only were these thoughts continuously tormenting her, but she couldn’t find where her mother hid her cell phone. It was taken away as punishment for losing once again.
As she continued to ravage her mother’s wardrobe, she unexpectedly felt something hard and rectangular buried beneath her mom’s nightgown. As she eagerly reached in, she expected to recover her long lost phone. But she was surprised when she pulled out a hardcover journal instead.
Despite her disappointment, she began to riffle through all the pages to see what was written inside. And what she read shocked her. For all the words that floated within her head had been meticulously and repeatedly scribbled down on each and every inch of the journal. It was written in her mom’s curly handwriting. However, instead of writing about Tara, her mother was writing about herself.
Often times the people who are most judgmental towards others, are usually even more judgmental towards themselves. If we can peer through their smokescreen of criticism, we may surprisingly discover that they are really crying out for someone to show them some grace.
