My family and I recently took a trip to Nashville, TN and we ate lunch at a restaurant called Monell’s.

When you walk into this business, you enter an aged Victorian-style home full of antique teapots, large wooden tables and captivating conversations. It feels similar to walking into your grandmother’s house.

At Monell’s, you are served family-style as you pass around bowls of delicious Southern food to people you are meeting for the first time.

We began conversations with people at our table—people of different ethnicities, ages and backgrounds—and proceeded to spend an hour discussing our lives, families, jobs, schools, interests and stories.

I took a minute to survey the crowd around me, and I witnessed a smile on each individual’s face—people who came as strangers and were going to leave as friends.

I also took a minute to soak up the moment and reflect on an idea, which is this (well half of it):

We each have a unique story.

I know you have heard it before, and it is not revolutionary (and borderline cheesy,) but it is so true. Have you ever thought about how no one on this earth has the same story as you? Where you live, where you work, what you enjoy, what you have walked through, what you believe, who you are… it is all yours, and only yours. I believe that is an incredible and beautiful thing. Be proud of your story. Even if you feel like your life is not interesting, it is. It is important.

But, at the same time, we are all the same. Here is the other half of my reflection.

It’s easy to look at someone and ponder all of the ways you wouldn’t be able to relate to them. I would suggest that we aren’t as different as we think. We all long to be loved, heard and accepted. We all experience sadness, happiness, anger and fear. We all deal with family and friend issues. We all face the slightest bit of nerves when meeting someone new. We all have the desire to laugh, create, explore and adventure, in many different capacities. No matter how smart we appear, we still all have to sound out “Wed-nes-day” in our heads before spelling it. No matter how proper we appear, we still all stuff our faces with pizza every now and then. No matter how fun-loving we appear, we still all love nights when we cuddle up in our beds and watch Netflix.

Old or young, rich or poor, educated or non-educated, famous or unknown, white or black, extroverted or introverted, American or non-American, attractive or not so attractive—twe are all human. We can all relate in some way.

So, as we continue to fight, disagree and become angry over our differences, remember how we are all in the same boat. If we could recognize this more often, I think our world would be a much more peaceful place. Go out and hear people’s stories. Go out and share yours.