The drunk thinks one thing; the bartender thinks another.
At its most literal, this proverb can seem obvious. A person drinking in a bar thinks they are fine and can handle more alcohol – they order another drink. The bartender thinks they cannot – he refuses to serve it. Battle lines are drawn, and what began as a great evening devolves into a war.
This proverb says it is all a matter of perspective. And it is essential to give others space to have a different perspective rather than insisting that everyone adopt your view.
One day, I happened to mention to my husband that I loved anchors because to me, they represent being solid and grounded; to be anchored is to have sure base you can always come back to so you are never lost. He looked at me like I had five heads. He explained that to him, anchors represent the ocean and all of its vastness; the myriad possibilities and opportunities we have depending on which way we choose to sail. We looked at exactly the same thing yet gave it opposite meanings – one vast, one fixed.
We could choose to battle over this until one of us agreed with the other, but why? By recogninzing the perspectives we bring, both of us now have a richer way to look at anchors. This proverb’s lesson is about respecting different veiwpoints which doesn’t mean you have to agree with them. It is about realizing that there are many ways to look at a situation; suspending judgement and applying other lenses.
Strive to see as both the drunk and the bartender to gain a whole view.
