Something I’ve been learning a lot about this month is: eye contact.
I’ve always been pretty good at making eye contact with people. I mean, I like eyes. Brown eyes, blue eyes, green eyes, whatever… I think they’re nice. I might even go as far as to say that they’re my favorite human feature.
Before this month, I would always try to make a point of looking people in the eyes when they’re talking to me – to show that I’m listening and that I respect what they have to say.
Now, I think all of that is good and whatnot, but this month I’ve learned to look deeper. I’ve learned that there is even more to eye contact than just those things.
You can tell so much about a person from looking in their eyes… from TRULY looking in their eyes. You can see their heart – whether they’re happy, sad, or frustrated. You can tell if they’re genuine or not. You can tell if they’re suffering or if they’re at peace. You can tell when they love someone… and when they really don’t love someone. You can tell when they’re laughing… and when they would rather be crying. When you truly look into someone’s eyes with the desire to know them and what they’re feeling, you can just… tell.
I’ve experienced this in so many ways this month.
I had a moment where I was able to look at an individual I didn’t even know and see that he was broken inside… which then gave me the opportunity to speak and pray with him about those things.
I had numerous experiences where I would have conversations with my teammates solely through eye contact… without using any words. Yes, I do believe part of this comes from us now knowing each other so well, but it was still freaking awesome!
There were numerous times where I found myself telling people that I understood where they were coming from, or that everything was going to be okay, and in return know that they understood what I was communicating.
There were numerous times where people were also able to do the same for me.
Eye contact is one of the coolest forms of communication, in my opinion. It goes beyond the surface level of a relationship and gets to the depths of an individual. It destroys the sometimes empty rambling of words and communicates a message that is clear and straight to the point. It tells the truth. There is no doubting it. It communicates attentiveness. It communicates respect. It communicates love. It takes away from selfishness and replaces it with selflessness – I don’t know if it’s possible to see someone’s heart through their eyes if you’re looking selfishly. It is beautiful.
I want to challenge you to look into someone’s eyes today. To truly, deeply look into their eyes, no matter how weird it might feel at first. See how they’re really feeling. See their heart… and once you do this, go out and respond to what you see in love. You won’t regret it. In fact, I think you’ll be extremely blessed by it, as will the individual you are communicating with.
Go out and change the world, peoples!
<3 Em
