I return the bitterness,
Which you gave to me;
When I wanted loveliness
Tantalant and free.
I return the bitterness
It is washed by tears;
Now it is a loveliness
Garnished through the years.
I return it loveliness,
Having made it so;
For I wore the bitterness
From it long ago.
Mahatma Gandhi
Sometimes feeling good arrives in the strangest of ways. I like to go to the library to work on my blog. I am sitting at a table. Also sitting at the table is a young guy, college aged. He’s sitting on the other side of the table off to my right. We’re both working on our Macbooks. He started to take his glasses off to rub his eyes and a lens popped out. He was embarrassed. I said, “That’s happened a hundred times to me. We both laughed. I felt good. He felt good. Yes, life is good when we connect, even in simple ways.
I like to go to the gym. I hit the gym six days a week. I enjoy exercising. I also enjoy the friendships I’ve made. Over the past three weeks one of my friends wasn’t showing up. At first I thought he was on vacation. When his absence went into three weeks I wondered if something was wrong. i decided to text him and ask how he was doing. He responded immediately. He was grateful I was checking in on him and said he life was very busy and he would return soon. I was happy he was okay. I think he was happy that someone checked in on him. Is there someone in your life you haven’t seen in a while? Think about checking in on them. All you need to do is text or email.
In her work, Optimism, Helen Keller writes, “Once I knew the depth, where no hope was, and darkness lay on the face of all things. Then love came and set my soul free. Once I knew only darkness and stillness. Now I know hope and joy. Once I fretted and beat myself against the wall that shut me in. Now I rejoice in the consciousness that I can think, act, and attain Heaven. My life was without past or future; . . . but a little word from the fingers of another fell into my hand, the clutch and emptiness, and my heart leapt to the rapture of living. Night fled before the day of thought, and love and joy and hope came up in a passion to the obedience of knowledge. Can anyone who has escaped such captivity, who has felt the thrill and glory of freedom, be a pessimist? Pps. 9-10
NOTE: One of my favorite mantras is, “Love always wins.” You’ll see it every now and again on my blog. Helen Keller felt the touch of love. It opened her heart to a new and beautiful world even though she was deaf and blind. That’s what love does to us. It opens up new and beautiful worlds. Love is the miracle that each of us can work. We have the power of love to open up new and beautiful worlds for each other.
Tolstoy’s king in his short story, Three Questions, is disappointed the hermit did not give him the wisdom he sought, He said, ““The King approached him, and said: “For the last time, I pray you to answer my questions, wise man.” “You have already been answered!” said the hermit, still crouching on his thin legs, and looking up at the King, who stood before him. “How answered? What do you mean?” asked the King.”
Note: How often have you been disappointed when seeking something you strongly desired? Yet, in retrospect, you look back at your disappointment and have a deep sense of gratitude that you did not get what you wanted. It took a while to realize that everything you wanted was already in front of you. In Tolstoy’s story (I encourage you to read it), the hermit explains to the king how he already had the answers to his questions. The most important time is now. The most important person is the person who is in front of you. The most important action is to do good. Tolstoy provides lessons that can guide everyone’s life.
I went to the supermarket, in south Texas it’s HEB, yesterday. I met a neighbor and we parked our baskets out of the way and started chatting. Half way up the aisle where we were standing a bag of chips fell off the shelve. I made a mental note to pick it up if it was still on the floor when we finished chatting. I wasn’t counting, but I estimate at least 20 people walked by the chips including workers. Then, one woman cane along, stopped, picked up the chips and placed them back on the shelve and continued on her way. She restored my faith. She was awake. When I see people do something nice, kind, or loving, it gives me an emotional boost and reinforces my notion, that doing something nice, kind, and loving for others is also my daily job.
It’s tough to be quiet when you think the other person is wrong or nuts. It’s easy to argue with this person and attempt to put him/her in his/her place. No matter the “rightness” of your argument, you lose if your attempt is the change the way the other person thinks. You see this played out on all the political talk shows. It doesn’t matter which perspective they promote, they’re right in their minds. If you want to feel better, roll with it. You don’t have to agree. You can ask questions in a gentle way that may help them reflect on their position. In any event, you will not lose a friend because of an argument over political issues. And, you’ll sleep better.
