If you want to speak out, speak out for honesty, truth, and compassion. You’ll never have to apologize. You’ll never have to say you misspoke. You may not be popular; you’ll sleep well at night, knowing you did the right thing.
compassion
A Better Life ~ Is It Time to Heal?
We’ve all been wounded. For some, the wounds are open and bleeding. For others, the wounds are hidden, but they are there. Is it time to look compassionately at our wounds and cease blaming ourselves? Is it time to love the wounds into healing? Is it time to transform the wounds into lessons to nurture one’s growth?
Today’s Poem ~ Let Me Live by the Side of the Road
Let Me Live by the Side of the Road
Sam Walter Foss
Let me live in a house by the side of the road,
Where the race of men go by—
The men who are good and the men who are bad,
As good and as bad as I.
I would not sit in the scorner’s seat,
Or hurl the cynic’s ban;—
Let me live in a house by the side of the road
And be a friend to man.
I see from my house by the side of the road,
By the side of the highway of life,
The men who press with the ardor of hope,
The men who are faint with the strife.
But I turn not away from their smiles nor their tears—
Both parts of an infinite plan;—
Let me live in my house by the side of the road
And be a friend to man.
I know there are brook-gladdened meadows ahead
And mountains of wearisome height;
And the road passes on through the long afternoon
And stretches away to the night.
But still I rejoice when the travelers rejoice,
And weep with the strangers that moan,
Nor live in my house by the side of the road
Like a man who dwells alone.
Let me live in my house by the side of the road
Where the race of men go by—
They are good, they are bad, they are weak, they are strong,
Wise, foolish—so am I.
Then why should I sit in the scorner’s seat
Or hurl the cynic’s ban?—
Let me live in my house by the side of the road
And be a friend to man.
Today’s Power Thought ~ How Have You Marked Your Trail?
Take a look over your shoulder. What kind of trail are you leaving? Did you mark your trail with how much you cared about others, our environment, and how you have given it your all?
💡 Something to Think About
Friends help friends. One can measure the depth of friendship by how willing a friend is to help in time of need. It’s a two way street. A trusted friend is priceless, don’t let go.
🍎 Health Hack: Good Health and Self-Compassion are Linked
Do you treat yourself as well as you treat your friends and family?
That simple question is the basis for a burgeoning new area of psychological research called self-compassion — how kindly people view themselves. People who find it easy to be supportive and understanding to others, it turns out, often score surprisingly low on self-compassion tests, berating themselves for perceived failures like being overweight or not exercising.
The research suggests that giving ourselves a break and accepting our imperfections may be the first step toward better health. People who score high on tests of self-compassion have less depression and anxiety, and tend to be happier and more optimistic. Preliminary data suggest that self-compassion can even influence how much we eat and may help some people lose weight.
Joseph Campbell on Staying in Love
Two people meet and fall in love. Then they marry, and the real Sam or Suzy begins to show through the fantasy, and, boy, is it a shock. So a lot of little boys and girls just withdraw their anima or animus. They get a divorce and wait for another receptive person, pitch the woo again, and, uh-oh, another shock. And so on and so forth.
Source
Now the one undeniable fact: this disillusion is inevitable. You had an ideal. You married that ideal, then along comes a fact that does not correspond to that ideal. You suddenly notice things that do not quite fit with your projection. So what are you going to do when that happens? There’s only one attitude that will solve the situation: compassion. This poor, poor fact that I married does not correspond to my ideal; it’s only a human being. Well, I’m a human being, too. So I’ll meet a human being for a change; I’ll live with it and be nice to it, showing compassion for the fallibilities that I myself have certainly brought to life as a human being.
Compassion ~ Sri Chinmoy
Compassion
Sri Chinmoy
Write down how many things you want.
Meditate on how many things you need.
When you write them down
You will see
That you want millions of things.
When you meditate
You will notice
That you need only one thing
And that is God the Compassion,
God the eternal Compassion.
Good Things Are Coming Your Way
Today’s Reflection: Compassion
Don’t ever think compassion is weak. Compassion is about strength. ~ Joan Halifax
