A little seven-year-old granddaughter approached her grandma and invited her to play a game of Twister. Soon they were in an amazing array of positions. Finally when granddaughter fell and grandma was declared the winner, the proud seven-year-old turned to her friend and said, “See, I told you my grandma was flexible.”
There is much to be said in favor of flexibility. We live in an incredible world of change. Technology has created a global village. Each day we come across new ideas and have new exposures to different cultures. We visit with people who do not have the same background and see life through different colored glasses than we. We need to open our minds to the reality of other people’s worlds and do our best to understand them.
Often we mistake being rigid and uncompromising as standing firm for principles. That need not be. It is not necessary to sacrifice one’s own standards to understand that others also believe that their principles are important. Their principles are as important to them as ours are to us.
The world is changing and if we are not open to change we will become the antiques of society having a faith that is not attractive to anyone other than those who are afraid to change.
Written by Roger Bothwell on November 21, 2000
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