April 26, 2015

“Good and evil both earn compound interest.”  C. S. Lewis wrote that.

Let us refrain from no kindness, even if it seems small or pointless.  With all society’s travails and complexity, in each act of kindness we may be like first graders depositing pennies in an elementary savings account.  But each kindness is better than its absence.

Looking for miracles

Do I live as though miracles are less common than troubles?  
Am I looking at life through my WOW lens or my slog lens (also known as the self-pity lens)?
Is something only a miracle if I don't have to look for it?  If it is obvious and dramatic enough to demand my attention?  Is something a miracle only if enough people agree that it is - or if I think enough people would agree that it is?  How many votes does it take?  Are miracles so commonplace, or so devalued, that only the big ones count?
If something is only a miracle if I judge it to be one, is my definition of "miracle" reasonable?  Is it serving me?
What is the cost to me and to my community if I choose not to notice, be grateful for, and try appropriately to share the miracles of everyday life?

Everyday heaven

Do I look for heaven in this life, each day, in my interactions with people?
Gandhi wrote, "If you don't find God in the next person you meet, it is a waste of time looking for him further."  To find and, at least to myself, acknowledge God in each person, I have to look at each person I meet with the expectation of finding God in her or him.  How often do I do that?  How quickly and how much do I appreciate the divine in each person I meet?

Judging toys - and other things

On my walk this morning, a pickup truck with a loud, throaty engine and big, loud tires passed.  I thought, “Ah. Guys’ toys.” 

Then I caught myself: that thought was self-righteous.  Apart from the chance that every attribute of that truck was necessary, part of me was critical of the driver’s truck not because there is anything wrong with having, or driving, such a truck, or with enjoying having or driving such a truck.  I was just judging the truck owner’s choice of “toy”.  I noticed my double standard.  I have things I think are fun: I, too, have toys.  And I would prefer not to be judged harshly for my selection.

“Judge not lest ye be judged.”*  How many are the ways I judge!  The good news is that, from each of those ways, made conscious, I can practice not judging, which is acceptance, which is doing unto others what I would have them do unto me.  Which is part of love.

So, to the fellow driving that big truck today, thanks and thumbs up!

* Matthew 7:1.

Selfishly understanding.

Our circumstances vary: genetic qualities, talents and challenges; the degree and manner of love and nurture, and abuse and loss, we have experienced; exposure to nutrition and fitness, illness and danger; educational opportunities and the level of support in taking those opportunities.

Luck, and its resulting benefits and travails - its often great travails - vary. 

Responses to travails vary. 

Responses to grace (or, if you prefer, good luck) vary. 

Personalities vary.

Beliefs and faiths vary. 

Perspectives, values and judgments vary.

Goals, strategies and styles vary.

Patience, focus, motivation and perseverance vary.

What others expect of us, and what we have come to expect of ourselves, vary. 

But there is one constant: we make choices which, in the moment, by our unique, mostly unconscious and instantaneous alchemy, are the best we can see to make.  We make the best selfish choices we can see, including whether, when, and how to serve.

We are unique and gifted, blessed and burdened.  But so is each other person.

Let us be patient with each other, while expecting responsibility and not rewarding its lack.

Let us set aside our judgments enough to accept, more and more, our differences and treat each other with love.

For ourselves and for others, let us strive to live up to our blessings; to find and show joy in the deliberate care of our health and cultivation and expression of our potential; to show by example that love works.