What if You’re Wrong?

Once I was feeling very defensive about a particular subject in the midst of a conversation with my brother, who had a different opinion. I respect him so much and love him to pieces, so it was easy for me to ask myself, "What if I am wrong?" At that moment, I did not know who was right or wrong, or if that was even an accurate measure of the conversation. I just knew that if my brother thought one way and I thought another, I was open to being wrong.

The next question, the one Christian and I are wrestling with in our piano lessons is especially important. It goes like this, "What happens if I am wrong?" For Christian and I, if we are wrong, neither of us will progress in our piano lessons past a certain point. Sure, you can fudge on the fingering of Hot Cross Buns but I'm working on Debussy's Deux Arabesques and I will NOT master this piece without attention to my fingering.

It was also an important question when I was feeling a bit defensive and on the verge of arguing with my brother. Why would I want to argue with my brother over something I might be wrong about? Even if I'm right, is it worth arguing about with my precious bro? No.

When we ask ourselves what happens if we're wrong, or even if we're right, it allows us to think further ahead than our passions are leading us. Christian wants to play Hot Cross Buns his way but he is neither old enough or experienced enough to even conceive of what those fingers will need to do when he tackles Debussy.

If I'm wrong and defensive in my relationships, I may create needless conflict and hurt feelings. I may act like a jerk. People I love may falsely conclude that I do not respect them or care about their opinions.

"What happens if I am wrong?" OR even..."What happens if I am right but act like a jerk?" are two questions that help remind us to care less about some things because we care so deeply about other, higher values.