Everyone around you is fighting a battle. We all have some kind of inner turmoil going, pretty much all the time.
It’s a scary thought that the sweet cafeteria lady from your high school days had some inner turmoil because she was so sweet and never showed it. But one day her husband passed away and she still had to go to work the next day to pay the bills. She didn’t make it known, though. She smiled and said ‘hey sweetie, extra dumplin’s today?’
We all are going through some shit, the least we can do is be kind to one another. There are rare occasions when I get angry, and I lash out at people. Whether it be a random customer service rep that had the misfortune of talking to me that day, or someone close to me that just so happened to be around at my breaking point. I hate that I do it, but I’m human.
I make it a point to apologize to those people. To call the company back and speak to the rep. Or maybe to call that family member I snapped at for trying to help. Because that customer service rep’s brother could be in the hospital with COVID, fighting for his life. My family member could be going through a rocky time in their relationship. We never know.
We just never know, and most of the time we never will. That’s why we have to be kind to one another. Sometimes it even helps to just have someone listening to you yell. We have our limits and we know what we’re comfortable with, so set your boundaries.
Be kind. Love other people because they’re going through some hard times too. I live life and try to make people laugh or smile. I show them compassion because sometimes that’s what we need. Being shown compassion is a healing tool. It feels good to be understood.
It isn’t easy or even realistic to be kind and happy all the time, but even making the effort to be more kind to people is a good thing. Showing the willingness to be more conscious of how you treat someone shows true growth. It helps you to achieve your best self.
Tyler Wittkofsky is a multi-genre author, blogger, award-winning marketing and communications professional, and fierce mental health advocate from the southern coast of North Carolina. Tyler has been writing short stories for as long as he can remember. Growing up the grandson of an English teacher, Tyler had a constant fuel to his creative fire in his grandmother.
He started writing poetry in 2012 to cope with his mental health struggles with anxiety, bipolar, and depression. Using poetry as an escape, he developed a unique style of poetry that has left readers saying, “Tyler’s voice is compassionate, even while suffering, and I felt the despair and loneliness seeping out through his words.” His first poetry collection, composed of poems written from 2012 to 2016, was published in March 2020.
He began his first novel in 2019. The novel, (Not) Alone, was a story based on true events surrounding the struggles of living with mental illness. Described by readers as “An Intimate Closure with Mental Illness,” this began Tyler’s revitalized passion for mental health. He decided that his writing would have a focus on mental health.
His next novel, The Seeds of Love: Sunflower Kisses Book One, was his debut romance novel and debut series. Described as “a great job of relaying the realistic emotions of young love and emotional drama that is particularly difficult for young adults…”, his debut romance novel was met with much success.
In 2021, Tyler began writing short stories. He was accepted into several anthologies in mid-2021, expected for publication in early 2022. He also writes supernatural horror and historical fantasy for the online magazines In the Pantheon and In the Crescent. He has work published through Five Minute Affairs as well.
He built his website www.TeaButWithCoffee.com in 2021. On this site, he started his blogging journey. He began writing book reviews, interviewing indie authors, and writing on mental health. This passion sparked a new desire to connect with more people. Tyler is currently in the beginning stages of two podcasts that he hopes to be live by the end of 2021.
Tyler currently lives in Leland, North Carolina with his wife, Grace, and dogs, Dutch and Belle.
You can find him and his works here: https://linktr.ee/wittkofsky
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Tyler Wittkofsky 