Agreeing to disagree : some thoughts on conflict

Life is not all smooth sailing and others disagreeing with us or having a different point of view perhaps does not always have to become a problem unless we make it one. I have been slowly reading my way thought a lovely little book I got from the library called Heart Talk by Cleo Wade. The following piece of writing comes from it. In it she speaks of how we can learn to listen to others with a different opinion and see what wisdom they have to offer from their perspective.

Because there is no avoiding conflict in life, it is crucial that we learn to get good at disagreeing with each other. When we remember that not every difference of opinion is an attack, we are able to give the love, the respect, and the compassionate listening required to handle conflict peacefully. Just because someone disagrees with us does not mean that they are against us. Because conflict puts us in such a defensive place, it can trigger anger, frustration, and fear, which often makes us lash out, lose our temper or shut down. When we realise that there is no such thing as a conflict free life, we can instead choose to view every conflict as an opportunity to interact with others with a wider heart. Rather than letting conflict prompt behaviour that we may not be particularly proud of, let it instead act as a trigger to dive more deeply into loving kindness. The next time you find yourself in a conflict, see it as an opportunity to show the power and bigness of your love.

Our ideas can conflict without us necessarily being in conflict.