There is no shame in having a standard, guarded reaction to everything around us. We even have good reason - a whole story - that we tell ourselves about why we do or do not respond to events or scenarios around us. You know the drill and of what I speak. Most of the time, these are not our finest moments and rarely do we recognize them as opportunities to act on behalf of our better selves. We sense there is a better way to react to things but we cannot remember it. What is more disarming and courageous than doing what is unexpected from within the self? We have it within us to create a lightening strike and to thunder from within.
When we DO act from the heart (and we all do this upon occasion) it is extremely moving to our souls. This is what Hafiz is talking about in this poem. When we cultivate love within our hearts we can remember when to act from the heart and the fear based stories we tell ourselves lose their power within us and in the world. These people whom we come across from time to time, we deem the problem but they are here as agents to teach us compassion and overcoming a scarcity mindset. We have an embarrassment of riches in this country. Sometimes we must wrestle to the ground the stories that we tell ourselves about why we do or don't do things so we can do things differently; to learn the habit of choosing to do the kind and the decent thing. As the 14th Dalai Lama is known for saying: Be kind whenever possible. It is always possible.
Don't be late for class and I'll see you on the mat because loving the world is a struggle I wrestle with daily. I don't win as many rounds as I would like but, I do notice, the more love I cultivate in my life daily, the easier it is to remember the kind thing to do when the opportunity presents itself.
Thank you for listening.
https://pixabay.com/music/world-desert-voices-11468/
Music: This post reminds me of this song, Human, by Rag'n'Bone Man. We sometimes react with hiding our own pain behind the blame game. In doing so, we can miss the point of being alive and being able to recognize everyone around us as human and, in truth, a part of ourselves deserving compassion and respect.
The original post in this series of poems by Hafiz (including an addendum regarding the authenticity of these poems) can be found here. Also, my thoughts on this series a year into these poems, HERE.
The Gift: Poems by Hafiz and translated by Daniel Ladinsky can be purchased here.
This one hits home. My oldest son has chosen the *hobo life for the past year. For some it's its own culture and way of living off the grid. I saw him for the first time in 8 months the other day, back in New Mexico. He is my guru. ps., thank you for following.