Hello my fellow quote-lovers, I've got good news. Santa is coming early this year: it's quote time!

Today I'm sharing a quote that has had maybe as much everyday impact as any other I've come across.

Discovering this quote opened my eyes to many of the ills I'd been facing on a personal level, but its real value stretched well beyond that. It made sense of why such large groups of people have such intense conflicts with each other.

As a thoughtful, reasonable person who is willing to work to get it right, your views of the world are based heavily on real evidence - things you've seen, things you've experienced, things you've read about - real things that exist in the world. You're not just making it up. You work to align your beliefs about what is true with objective observation of the world.

Given that truth, it's very tempting to think that someone who believes otherwise is ignorant or foolish at best, and outright malicious and misleading at worst. After all, it's only logical that this is the case.

Ah, but stick around long enough with an empathetic eye toward truth and you'll see the equation isn't quite that simple. At least, as I've come to find it.

You're going to scoff, but here are the terms of our situation here: you can be completely right, and so can the person who believes the opposite of what you believe.

If you need a moment to process this seemingly preposterous claim, here it is.

...

Existence (i.e., everything that is) allows for both sides to genuinely feel and experience absolute truth in their convictions. And for both to be right, based on real facts and real evidence.

This isn't to exonerate those who actively seek to mislead in order to achieve personal gain. There are those, and they are a dime a dozen. They should be exposed, and they should be punished, or at least ignored.

But, make no mistake, two well-meaning people who want the best for themselves, their families, and the world, may correctly come to opposite conclusions.

So, the next time you're tempted to think the other side is brainless, moronic, or willfully ignorant, remember that it probably isn't that way. It's probably that they're just leading a very different life than you are.

And if we could lend them an empathetic ear, we could do a lot to come to peace with ourselves and with each other. And maybe that could help us realize a better condition for all of us.