Accepting

I must remember that when I walk into a room full of different types of people and opinions, backgrounds, I must be in my "acceptance" mode.  Where I get tripped up is when I hear someone say something that I think is dead wrong and I say to myself, "I don't accept that," which for me includes not accepting that person as they are at that moment.  If someone does not accept me, I cannot then refuse to accept them as they are.  I have heard people with sexual identity issues say that they don't go to something because they do not feel accepted.  But does feeling unaccepted lead you to not accept others who differ or disagree with you?  Where a room is full of non-acceptance behavior I have to be careful not to become unaccepting of the unacceptors.  I can disagree or not accept as true what someone says, but I try not to dismiss the person as "unacceptable" as a person.  I have not walked in their shoes or had their experiences or maybe even their fears about an issue.  I have seen people change over time in their views and opinions.  They were allowed to be themselves until new experiences and connections lad to to wear a new pair of glasses as someone metaphorically said.