As Yourself

 The saying goes, “Love your neighbor as you love yourself.”  That is, remember to fill up your own strength so that you can help others.  You cannot give water from an empty tank.  So I try to do my meditation early and whatever other spiritual practice so that I am able to help my neighbor.  When I am cranky, I am not much good for helping others.  Putting off self-care does not do much for anyone else.  I have seen people do the right and helpful thing but from anger and resentment.  Who needs that?

Ignored

 I have found that one of the reasons that homeless people get into rants, shouting aloud to no one, is because they are not being noticed.  They long to be seen.  It is not just about ignoring their meds.  And they don’t want to be seen just so they can be threatened or told to go away or be quiet.  They rebel at direction because they are not first treated as a person who exists.  So I say “hello.”  No direction or instruction, just the normal thing one might say to a stranger in my path.  I have experienced the person suddenly stop shouting and begin to talk to me in a normal voice.  Now they may make no sense, speaking non sequitur, about one thing and then another.  So they might be insane but they feel recognized.  Eventually, they might ask for something and not always money.  Lots of people live alone in San Francisco apartments.  A simple hello can make more of a difference than you think.  

Speeding

 Do you find yourself living most of the time in the passing lane of life? Always in a hurry to get to the next whatever?  A monastery avoids this by having schedules for ordinary people who are not trying to accomplish multiple tasks in a day.  There is work and then it stops at a certain point, regardless of the status of the job.  Life can be about a steady pace, rather than a fast pace.  It depends on what you are trying to accomplish.  Meditation brings you into the right lane, the slower lane.  it gets in the way of accomplishing the next thing, but also frees you from becoming a slave to the “next” thing.  

The Journey

 Many people are on vacation this summer.  It is about going somewhere on an outer journey.  But many do not have a meditative life that allows them to be on an inner journey as well as the outer journey they are on.  And so, they fail to see deeply and thus fail to feed the heart at depth.  They come home maybe refreshed, but then daily life is just as they left it.  So make your summer travels both outward and inward.  You will see more than you expected.  You may see with the inner eye which no camera can capture.  It will show up in  your face.  Then the daily sameness will not be the same.  

Fantasy

 Fantasy is OK in the movies, but not in real daily life.  Why?  Well, fantasy is about what is not real, what is not actually present.  I am escaping my present circumstances.  This means that at the moment, I fail to see my spiritual connection with what is around me.  I may be in fantasy to avoid what is around me.  Boredom is often a failure to see more deeply.  Life is gift, not a drudgery to carry around.  Meditation helps me to see more deeply and become more connected with my surroundings. Fantasy just leads to loneliness.  

Secrets

 My God is one of Love.  Love is a great Power to heal.  If God were all about condemnation and judgment, I would not be doing very well.  Love, on the other hand, knows my secrets and bad habits, and forgives with compassion.  Why not just be a god of condemnation?  Because Love wants me to grow to be my best self.  If my God can forgive, then I can forgive myself.  Is this some easy way out?  No. Condemnation of myself fills me with shame and guilt.  I cannot grow with that emotional energy.  I might do the right thing at the moment out of shame and guilt but that would be all about fear.  A fear-based life goes nowhere good.  If I can love myself in my imperfections, then maybe I can love others in theirs too.  

Honesty

 Honesty is very important for me.  But it is more than just telling the truth to others.  It is telling the truth to myself.  I need to know on a daily basis who I am and who I am becoming.  Fantasy does not help.  It just passes time, which is limited for all of us.  To make sure I am telling my own truth, I sometimes need to check in with others who are also trying to be honest with themself  and in turn being honest with the rest of us.  Sometimes, I need to hear someone else talk about being selfish, or resentful, or simply whiny, to recognize it in me.  This way, I see a shortcoming and work honestly to be rid of its power at this time.