Writing Prompt

“Before you contradict an old man, my fair friend, you should endeavor to understand him.”
~George Santayana

I have in the past struggled with being very hard headed when it comes to issues I oppose, but recently I have learned to think before I speak. My boyfriend is the one who helped me realize I was doing this. He is always thinking and looking at situations from different points of views. He has taught me that I need to know exactly how I feel on a situation or issue and have something to back those feelings up before I try to defend it. I have begun to realize that most the time I have an opinion on issues but do not really know why I feel the way I do. I now make sure I do not strike out in defense before I know my facts are right. I also try to see a situation from others point of views. I have to remember some people act and stand for things different from me because they have other circumstances in which create their views. When it comes to political views I am not real sure. I do not know the issues or their background so it is hard for me to say I have an opinion. I also feel I would need to do a lot of research to know exactly how a politician stands on the issues. I know they usually say things but I think most the time it is just what they think the people want to hear. I do not feel comfortable arguing politics. I know these things are important because the issues affect me in some way, but I will need to learn a lot more to really have a stance on things.