Do you think giraffes can drive?

I think they don’t. When you are driving, what is your first reaction when a fellow driver makes a mistake or do something unexpected? Do you tend to be compassionate or are you, let’s say, aggressive? Personally, when I step foot in my car, I unconsciously let the jackal takes the lead. And he tends to think every other car hosts a terrible driver. My first reaction is often: “why wouldn’t he let me go? Why didn’t he put his turn signal on? How am I supposed to know he is turning?" And so on and so forth.

It seems like aggressiveness is part of the driver’s manual. Sometimes, it seems like a car is like a Faraday cage for connection. No connection is made with the outside world. The big box protects us and the jackal can live his life as he wants without guilt or shame. The problem is that the driver loses also the connection with himself. It is possible that I will not hurt anybody if I scream at “them” from inside of my car because they won’t hear me, but I lose my own awareness. And if I lose my awareness, it can impact my driving negatively.

Do you think giraffes can drive? | Daily NVC

I think there is another reason why the giraffe does not drive. She likes to take her time. She could not be aware of her needs if she was going fast. She is on a slow path. Do you remember the fable of the hare and the tortoise? The giraffe and the jackal are on the same journey; the jackal is always faster but down the road, the giraffe is so much more peaceful.

Marshall Rosenberg said that when he was beginning learning how to be more compassionate, his son asked him something and Marshall paused for a while. His son said, “you’re so slow” and Marshall answered raising his voice “let me tell you what I can say fast” and his son replied “no dad, take your time”. I like this anecdote because it is a good reminder that learning NVC takes time, but it is so worth it.

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