Having been through a lot of bullying as a kid, I have always been paranoid that when others are laughing, they are laughing at me, somehow. I worry that people don't want to sit beside me on the bus for some reason. I feel like they look at me and then decide not to sit there and I don't know why.

I am conscious that the same thing happens to others, that they worry that I am judging them. So it does make me conscious that I might be looking at people too much and making them uncomfortable. But it also brings up the fact that we can do little things to treat others respectfully and help them have positive experiences in a world that might otherwise be painful.

Sometimes a smile is the best thing we can give a stranger. I'm also not afraid to ask people who look like they are having trouble if they are ok. It can make a difference just knowing that someone cares, even if they don't know you.

Of course, this could also make them angry... but I think it's better to try in the hopes that I might help them, than to worry about getting rejected myself.

All of this is hard to navigate in a society that is so scared of talking to strangers!