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Posts from the ‘Compassion’ Category

Jul 21

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Throwing Starfish

“the Heavenly Pivot, a turning point in life in which knowledge is worn into knowing, watching into joining, seeking into being, and struggling with truth is worn into inhabiting the truth of struggle.” – Mark Nepo, The Fifth Season: Creativity in the Second Half of Life

“While wandering a deserted beach at dawn, stagnant in my work, I saw a man in the distance bending and throwing as he walked the endless stretch toward me. As he came near, I could see that he was throwing starfish, abandoned on the sand by the tide, back into the sea. When he was close enough I asked him why he was working so hard at this strange task. He said that the sun would dry the starfish and they would die. I said to him that I thought he was foolish. There were thousands of starfish on miles and miles of beach. One man alone could never make a difference. He smiled as he picked up the next starfish. Hurling it far into the sea he said, “It makes a difference for this one.” I abandoned my writing and spent the morning throwing starfish.”― Loren Eiseley

From knowledge to knowing
Watching to joining
Seeking to being
Make a difference today
Be kind, open doors, yield, be present, plant seeds of encouragement, love generously, hope fiercely, laugh heartily, cast light
And know that it’s enough, abundant and overflowing
Start and keep throwing starfish.

“The door is open. Go.”― Louise Erdrich, The Sentence

Apr 7

One Set of Footprints

“I do not forget any good deed done to me & I do not carry a grudge for a bad one.”― Viktor E. Frankl, Man’s Search for Meaning

Footprints in the Sand

“One night I dreamed I was walking along the beach with
the Lord. Scenes from my life flashed across the sky. In
each, I noticed footprints in the sand. Sometimes there were
two sets of footprints; other times there was only one.

During the low periods of my life I could see only one set of
footprints, so I said, “You promised me, Lord, that you would
walk with me always. Why, when I have needed you most,
have you not been there for me?”

The Lord replied, “The times when you have seen only one set
of footprints, my child, is when I carried you.” – Margaret Fishback Powers

You are loved, belong and matter.
Not for doing, performing, productivity, status.
For being.
Many will walk through life and never hear this or see this in action.
Each of us can carry, encourage, be kind, considerate, compassionate.
There are days when we need to be carried too.
Carry when you can.
Be carried when you need.
One set of footprints.
It was then I carried you.

“We never know the quality of someone else’s life, though we seldom resist the temptation to assume and pass judgement.”― Tami Hoag, Dark Horse

Jul 11

Dive In, Joy Awaits

“To laugh is to live profoundly.”― Milan Kundera, The Book of Laughter and Forgetting

“Try to feel compassion for how difficult it is to be an imperfect human being in this extremely competitive society of ours. Our culture does not emphasize self-compassion, quite the opposite. We’re told that no matter how hard we try, our best just isn’t good enough.”― Kristin Neff, Self-Compassion: The Proven Power of Being Kind to Yourself

Be kind to yourself and then spill into the world.
Share with great abandon.
Kindness, generosity, connection, laughter, joy, play, rest, delight, beauty, wonder.
These are not soft.
They are tough, gritty, resilient, secret weapons to live well.
Get to the work of living.
Daily.

“Our successes and failures come and go—they neither define us nor do they determine our worthiness.”― Kristin Neff, Self-Compassion: The Proven Power of Being Kind to Yourself

Feb 13

Connected in the Deep, Hidden in the Ordinary

“We are like islands in the sea, separate on the surface but connected in the deep.”― William James

“As you take a few minutes each day to quiet your mind, you will discover a nice benefit: your everyday, “ordinary” life will begin to seem far more extraordinary. Little things that previously went unnoticed will begin to please you. You’ll be more easily satisfied, and happier all around. Rather than focusing on what’s wrong with your life, you’ll find yourself thinking about and more fully enjoying what’s right with your life. The world won’t change, but your perception of it will. You’ll start to notice the little acts of kindness and caring from other people rather than the negativity and anger.”― Jack Canfield

May we greet this day and each other with a newness, a hospitality, a welcoming, belonging.
Connected and created for relationship, joy, awe, unfolding, unfurling, wonder.
Open space, home coming, extraordinary in the midst of even a Monday.
Awaken your senses, seek surprise, allow fresh air in to breathe in delight woven into this ordinary day.
Gratitude, grace and a keen awareness of blessings to you today.

“Hospitality means primarily the creation of free space where the stranger can enter and become a friend instead of an enemy. Hospitality is not to change people, but to offer them space where change can take place. It is not to bring men and women over to our side, but to offer freedom not disturbed by dividing lines.”― Henri J.M. Nouwen, Reaching Out: The Three Movements of the Spiritual Life

Jan 13

Unleash and Release

“Throughout our lives, God's grace bestows temporal blessings and spiritual gifts that magnify our abilities and enrich our lives. His grace refines us. His grace helps us become our best selves.” – Dieter F. Uchtdorf

“Throughout our lives, God’s grace bestows temporal blessings and spiritual gifts that magnify our abilities and enrich our lives. His grace refines us. His grace helps us become our best selves.” – Dieter F. Uchtdorf

“There is that incessantly gnawing loneliness that leaves us ever-restless, eventually driving us to embark upon some endless journey supposing that whatever would fill us is held in some hidden treasure that lays silently buried in a yet undiscovered place. Yet, it would do us well to understand that this loneliness is no more and no less than the image of the infinite God ever-stirring within us and all the while begging to be unleashed.”― Craig D. Lounsbrough

Loosen the binds and bonds of ego, worry, restlessness.
Enter the space of spirit, soul, being.
Always present, waiting to be found, seen, experienced.
Seek, find and be found.
Listen for the whisper, the call.
Here for a purpose, hear on purpose.
Inquire, discern, reflect, respond.
Salt, light, color.
Do good.
Bless the world with your best imperfect, flawed, beautiful self.

“Christ has no body now but yours
No hands, no feet on earth but yours
Yours are the eyes that look
Compassion on the world
Yours are the feet that walk to do good
Yours are the hands that bless all the world.” – St. Theresa of Aliva

Dec 28

Listening Points

“Above all the grace and the gifts that Christ gives to his beloved is that of overcoming self.” – Francis of Assisi

“While you are proclaiming peace with your lips, be careful to have it even more fully in your heart.” Francis of Assisi

In politics – public, work, personal – we create talking points. To win an argument. To sell our view. To get a vote. To get buy in for some corporate flavor of the month. To make “easy” money. To get more with less. Get rid of the old, bring in the new. Boiling down complex issues to sell the shortcut and scheme that will work this time. Make it simple. Even when it’s not, especially then.

If your philosophy can fit on a bumper sticker, it may be time to go a little deeper, to expand your view, to listen more and talk less. If we spent more time on listening points rather talking points, we might gain insight, understanding and connection. Finding substance through inquiry. Authenticity, belonging, understanding, patterns that lead to sustainable plans and outcomes.

We don’t have to boil everything down. Not everything is an argument. Conversation and listening lead to understanding, diversity and beauty. Spend more time honing your listening points rather than your talking points. Pay attention and listen to understand rather than craft a reply. Relationship over transaction. Right over righteousness. Compassion over correction. Empathy over apathy. Cast light, a single sunbeam.

“A single sunbeam is enough to drive away many shadows.” – Francis of Assisi

Aug 25

No Small Acts

“Spread love everywhere you go. Let no one ever come to you without leaving happier.” —Mother Teresa

“Remember there’s no such thing as a small act of kindness. Every act creates a ripple with no logical end.” —Scott Adams

Never underestimate the power of thoughts and words
Go beyond yourself and encourage others
If you want to change the world, you can today in small acts
Be kind, smile, greet a stranger, call a friend, text encouraging words to a family member
Put aside opinion, judgment and righteousness and be a good human being
We are not called to be doers, busy, efficiently checking off tasks
We are called to be light, peace and joy
Get your mind off yourself, being offended, being owed anything, comparison and counting
It’s a trap that keeps you stuck, shrinks your world
Be generous and suddenly you become rich
What will you leave behind on the path you walk today?
Seeds or weeds
Brighten someone’s day and the sun shines on both

“That is what compassion does. It challenges our assumptions, our sense of self-limitation, worthlessness, of not having a place in the world, our feelings of loneliness and estrangement. These are narrow, constrictive states of mind. As we develop compassion, our hearts open.” —Sharon Salzberg