It’s safe to say most of us have been spending more time at home in recent months. In so doing my appreciation has grown toward the little drink station in my kitchen. I visit it throughout the day for pour-over-coffee, Nespresso, hot tea, and cold smoothies. It provides me with numerous bursts of energy.
Have you found something in your home you now have a greater appreciation for than you did several months ago?
If it feels like nothing is, think about the sunshine bouncing off everything it touches, or how the surface of water sparkles, or go light a candle and watch the flame sparkle and dance.
We all have rough times and really bad days but life goes on and we all deserve a little sparkle in our existence.
Kindness and common courtesy, are they being lost? I seem to find less and less of it in my daily life. From the common curtesy of a man holding a door open for a woman, to a younger person giving up their seat on an airport shuttle to an older person. Often, I am left to open a door for myself as the strapping young man ahead of me leaves it to close in my face. Recently while traveling my seat was offered to someone older than me while someone many decades younger sat comfortably, absorbed in their phone, oblivious to their surroundings. And what’s up with checkout clerks? They seem to smile less, of course all we can see is their eyes, so maybe their smile just isn’t big enough to shine through.
The combination of the social distance drum beating a background mantra as the latest digital device magnetizes our minds is allowing our base nature to be more acceptably prominent. Kindness is a choice. The distractions of today seem to be causing the ability and desire to be kind to slowly slip away.
What might happen if each of us realized we are not the center of the universe, it is far more vast than our little minds can imagine, we are not separate from the universe we are a speck of dust contained in it, and we are not permanent, our time as we exist today is limited. What might happen if we went out today and treated each person we dealt with as if they were our brother or sister? And even if they are behaving like they aren’t, we pretend that they’re just confused, and treat them like they are any way. What if we insist through our mannerisms and our tone that we see each person we interact with in their highest self, their best self? What if, just for today we decided to be kind, instead of right? How might doing these things change us?
Maybe it’s my age, but I miss those good ole days, when people were compelled to be polite and kind, even if they didn’t feel like it.
This meditation takes less than three minutes and if done frequently can have a profound impact on your life. Using the word “may” sends two messages to your subconscious:
(1) it expresses the possibility of the statement
(2) it expresses permission, both in asking and receiving (may I, yes you may).
Let’s try it.
Sit quietly. Start with three deep breaths then say each statement one at a time and follow each statement with three deep breaths before saying the next statement:
3 breaths
May I be happy
3 breaths
May I be well
3 breaths
May I be kind toward my suffering
3 breaths
May I cultivate more kindness within my heart
3 breaths
May I continue to develop and grow spiritually, emotionally, mentally
3 breaths
That’s how simple it is. How do you feel? You can modify the statements or add to them and create your own personalized meditation. But why not try these for a week and see what they lead you to?
CUERO, TX. Indians were known to kill wild cattle that got stuck in Cuero Creek. The Spanish called it Arroyo del Cuero, or Creek of the Rawhide. The town was named after the creek. It was one of the stops I visited that was on the Chisholm Trail. You can read more about Cuero and it’s interesting history by visiting Texas State Historical Association.
Second Empire architectural style can be seen when viewing this courthouse. It is a style characterized by the use of a mansard roof, pavilions, elaborate ornament and strong massing. This was a style most popular between 1865 and 1900 notably used in public buildings as well as some commercial and residential structures.
The pictured Caldwell County courthouse was built in 1894 and is located in the county seat of Lockhart, Texas, formerly known as Plum Creek.
In the late 19th century the railroad arrived in Lockhart bringing with it economic growth. As it became a regional shipping center for local cotton the economy boomed and ushered in the establishment of other business.
Today it holds several claims to fame including the oldest operating public library and the title “Barbecue Capital of Texas” bestowed on it by the Texas Legislature in 1999.
Does this courthouse look familiar to you? You may have seen it in a film. Located only thirty miles south of Austin, it has played host to several films including: