(inspired by the need to remember kindness)
When the heart shatters from terror and tragedy…there is a time to take refuge in the Heart - yours and mine and ours. And, there is a time to take a deep breath, bolster our inner strength and Act.
We will overcome these acts of violence with acts of kindness. It is not random. It is not by pure, unavoidable chance. It is choice and we are all, in some way, responsible for this current state of the world - the outer reflects the inner.
In these times, remember. Remember, you are here for a reason. Remember, you are not a victim. Remember, you have a choice as to how you respond - you/we are response-able.
Remember, also, to tend your bodies - physical, emotional, mental and spiritual - with immense self care. Go into nature with your cell phone off or better, consciously left inside. Speak your prayers to the trees. There is a time for tuning into the current news, and a time for tuning into the eternal Source.
So, as much as possible, be clear about the choices you make and how you direct your life force energy. Choose your thoughts, words and actions. Also, forgive yourself when in retrospect, you can see where you might have done better, more or differently…Be kind to your precious heart.
As in so many cases, John O’Donohue's words are fuller and deeper than the hollows, cracks and voids carved from the wounds of horrifying experiences. May these words extracted from his essay, “Kindness: The First Gift,” comfort you and give you hope:
“There is a kindness that dwells deep down in things it presides everywhere, often in the places we least expect. The world can be harsh and negative, but if we remain generous and patient, kindness inevitably reveals itself.”
“Kindness strikes a resonance with the depths of your own heart; it also suggests your vulnerability, though somehow exposed, is not taken advance of; rather, it has become an occasion for dignity and empathy. Kindness casts a different light, an evening light that has the depth of color and patience to illuminate what is complex and rich in difference.”
“Despite all the darkness, human hope is based on the instinct that at the deepest level of reality some intimate kindness holds sway. This is the heart of blessing. To believe in blessing is to believe that our being here, our very presence in the world, is itself the first gift, the primal blessing.”
Descend from thinking mind into the heart of blessing. Arrive fully here in the poignancy of this life, for being here is so much, and it requires all of us.
In Love & Kindness,
Jennifer
* The Guided Meditation this week brings us into the heart of blessing. May it soothe your soul, and not only yours, but those around you in infinite circles of blessings. Posted for the Beauty, Love & Magic Makers on Patreon soon.