To love deeply, we must forgive deeply, because to be human, we are only able to be human. As The Tao says, we must be kind to each other—that is the bigness of love, to be kind to everyone we know, even those who seem to despise us. Living in the moment, being present, humbly serving, seeking privacy—they all come down to loving self, others, and God in a deep Agape way. By being humble on Day 26, I let go of worries because no one was watching. Life became full of possibility, not full of responsibilities. I was feeling expansive. We feel compassion for the homeless, the soul-weary, the sinning adulterer and murdering maniac by understanding we all have very different voices and different scenery playing in the movie that runs through our consciousness. Their stories are our stories. Therein lies empathy. By not being so self-absorbed, I start to understand what motivates people. If I try to listen and understand, I’m loving, and, as Buddha said, “Neither fire nor wind, birth nor death can erase our good deeds.” All that is required of me is that I be there for others. Bottom line: love God and love others. The more I serve others, the more I’ll just be, the less my ego will be involved, the more God-centered I’ll be.
Tag Archives | faith
Log Post 22, Week 22 – Letting Go
Check out the new cover! I decided, after 22 weeks, to redesign the book, inside and out, and now it’s a special gift or coffee table book. And on Day 22 in the book, I focused on Faith. Khalil Gibran said “Faith is a knowledge within the heart, beyond the reach of proof.” If only we had the faith that everything would turn out all right. Isn’t it what a woman wants her lover to tell her, a child wants to hear from her mother, a parishioner wants to hear from her priest? During Lent, I try harder than usual to find peace, love, meaning, oneness, in an attempt to conquer worry. On my desk in the office, I keep a small magnet decorated with green foliage, trees, and flowers as the background on which I pasted the words “You don’t have to spend another moment wondering and worrying.” It seems to me that if we trust the universe and live in the moment, there can be no worrying. Worry is about something in the past or something in the future, both of which are out of control. We just need to open up our hearts to the present moment with complete abandonment, in faith, for worry to be conquered and no longer part of our lives.
30 Perfect Days Log Post 17, Learning to Fly
If I believed I could fly when I let go of the branch, life would be so much easier. If you’ve read 30 Perfect Days, Finding Abundance in Ordinary Life, you know that every chapter begins with a quote. For Day 17, I chose this one by C. JoyBell C.: “You may not know where you’re going, but you know that so long as you spread your wings, the winds will carry you.” Even though my head thinks I should fly, my heart is afraid to go into the unknown. But if I allowed myself to go into the unknown, to follow an unfettered heart, with spread wings, miracles could happen. People who work in private on their art, their writing, their gardening, doing it for the love of it, yes, they should be celebrated, and watched. They are oblivious to the score because they’re in love with life and living authentically. They’re flying. Escape is okay. It reminds me I’m alive. Why aren’t we allowing ourselves to fly?