They are Yellow not Green

Tennis balls are yellow right? I have never thought any other way. The facts are clear. You can literally see for yourself. Sure, I've seen some off colored balls from time to time. I've been present for radicals showing up with white or orange tennis balls. Trying to be cool or different.

Recently the International Tennis Federation declared only yellow or white balls could be used.

But never green. I've never seen a green tennis ball.

My wife and daughters on the other hand claim they have never seen a yellow tennis ball? They claim the world is full of green tennis balls.

What is this craziness? Why are they so foolish?

I have looked for common threads. Is seeing a tennis ball as green a gender thing? Could it be women see this particular object differently? Nope, I've asked around and found a couple of things. There are a collection of people who see tennis balls as green. Not all of them are women.

It leaves me wondering how can these perfectly rational people see something so basic so different than me. I've been told they can see how I would see tennis balls as yellow but they insist they are green. I can't even go that far. I don't see any green when I look at them.
Let's back up a step. Maybe these "green tennis ball people" aren't perfectly rational. After all, how could they be considered rational?

They can't even tell the color of a tennis ball.

Enough about tennis balls. Let's consider the big picture.

I would like to get into "group think" and lack of diversity of thought. Maybe even tolerance.

I love my wife and daughters. I respect them and their brains. When they say tennis balls are green they aren't trying to be argumentative. (Although, when the subject comes up, they aren't trying to stop the argument either).

How does this relate to other issues? I think the parallels are quite strong.

In the world we live in today we tend to view the other side of an issue as the enemy. If they can't see things our way they are just flat wrong. Some issues push us away from even being friends. Certainly, people aren't breaking off friendships over the color of a tennis ball, but you wonder where rational people draw the line.

Can we still be friends if we disagree over immigration, gun control, religion or even daylight savings time? (What about a Yankee fandom? Pity yes, befriend no way).

When somebody sees something differently than I do I'm trying to make my first reaction to consider their view.

When somebody sees something differently than I do I'm trying not to let their view define their entire personhood to me.

I know in a business situation we are better off when a diverse group of people shows up to solve a problem. If we all have the same perspective or views as each other our solutions get stale, boring and even a little ineffective.

I've heard it said the first idea is the worst idea but the most important. The first idea gets the ball rolling down the path to making an improvement. But in a room full of diverse thought the first idea is shaped, molded and improved upon. The end product is sometimes nothing like the first idea. But without the first idea, you would still be stuck in the past. The less productive past.

Tennis balls are yellow. But listen to the other person because they might offer an insight you find quite useful.