Moments of Kindness

Be kind whenever possible. It is always possible.  His Holiness the Dalai Lama

I like myself a whole lot better when I remind myself to show kindness to others. It really doesn’t take a lot—putting myself in their shoes definitely helps. 

Back when I was ruled by an inferiority complex and an overactive ego, kindness didn’t come easily. I was too busy comparing myself to others: who had what I wanted; who had more, even if it wasn’t something I wanted; feeling completely sorry for myself and angry that I felt trapped while having no clue how to effect change. That is simply no way to live this one, beautiful life!

Kindness begins with the inner landscape. I needed to stop hating myself so that I could express tenderness to that scared person inside my skin. That took a lot, because I had to fight the old habit of feeling ‘less than’ while angrily needing to hide it. What a roller-coaster of conflicting emotions! 

Wisdom grows along a side track of age and experience. I’ve shaken off the lies, and have learned to love who I am, even with the imperfections—and there are so many! It’s all good. I haven’t ‘arrived’, but life is a lot calmer now that I can accept reality and understand that a bump and a bruise along the way isn’t the same as abject failure.

So today, I am grateful for my growth. It’s a continuing process. I’m grateful that I am capable of both showing kindness and feeling kindly toward others as we all learn to navigate our individual paths.