My Religion is Kindness

Kindness

Before you know what kindness really is
you must lose things,
feel the future dissolve in a moment
like salt in a weakened broth.
What you held in your hand,
what you counted and carefully saved,
all this must go so you know
how desolate the landscape can be
between the regions of kindness.
How you ride and ride
thinking the bus will never stop,
the passengers eating maize and chicken
will stare out the window forever.

Before you learn the tender gravity of kindness,
you must travel where the Indian in a white poncho
lies dead by the side of the road.
You must see how this could be you,
how he too was someone
who journeyed through the night with plans
and the simple breath that kept him alive.

Before you know kindness as the deepest thing inside,
you must know sorrow as the other deepest thing.
You must wake up with sorrow.
You must speak to it till your voice
catches the thread of all sorrows
and you see the size of the cloth.

Then it is only kindness that makes sense anymore,
only kindness that ties your shoes
and sends you out into the day to mail letters and purchase bread,
only kindness that raises its head
from the crowd of the world to say
it is I you have been looking for,
and then goes with you every where
like a shadow or a friend.

- Naomi Shihab Nye

Thank you, Eliz for your friendship and kindness.

In the spirit of my previous post on gratitude I dedicate this gratitude post to:

Life.

• You’re there every morning when I open my eyes
• You break me wide open again and again
• Your paradox confounds me
• You bring me to my knees
• You are a mirror
• You challenge my mind, body and spirit
• You introduce me to myself over and over
• You move me and guide me
• You create me and recreate me
• You give me exactly what I need, even when it doesn’t feel like it
• You send me subtle messages hidden in my self trust
• You offer infinite possibilities and limitless miles of practice ground
• Both your beauty and callousness make my heart ache
• I serve you, you serve me
• You are chaotic on the surface but your patterns lead the way
• You are my teacher
• You know me fully, you love me fully
• You aren’t to be understood – only to be experienced
• You are an adventure that summons my courage daily
• You are the sweetest friend who always has my back
• You sometimes make good people suffer and give power to the cruel
• I love you for all that you are
• I love you for what you aren’t because it makes me who I am

 

 

This post was created as part of a global groundswell of gratitude called TweetsGiving. In conjunction with 12For12K, this celebration, created by US nonprofit Epic Change is an experiment in social innovation that seeks to change the world through the power of gratitude. Join us http://tweetsgiving.epicchange.org/

 

Can you find yourself on the list?

I’ve been feeling inspired a lot lately and when I get inspired I feel thankful. Some people inspire you to want to be more like them but my favorite people inspire me to be more like me.

In honor of Thanksgiving, here’s a running list of people who’ve inspired me recently and why. Chances are if you’re reading this, you’re on the list. It may be something you said or the way you said it. You may have done something really BIG, or perhaps it was a little thing you don’t even realize had an impact. Here’s a taste, and to make it fun, I’ve left the names off. Can you find yourself on the list? You matter more than you know and I’m grateful for you:

• You held my coat so that I could put my other arm in • You took a really big risk that’s going to pay off HUGE • You trusted me enough to share something personal • You made time to read and comment on my blog • You sat on the phone and let me figure it out for myself • You joined Crema Co-working and offered your talents • You said something nice about me publicly • You DM’d “You inspire me.” (You inspire me too.) • You turned me on • You listened so deeply; I could finally hear myself • You contacted me out of the blue to offer help • You got me to take action on a good idea • You smiled at me like I was the most important person in the world • You were cruel to me and helped me cultivate compassion • You shared your expertise with no strings attached • You asked me to help you • You called to say you were thinking about me • You made me laugh really, really hard • You gave me a Google Wave invite •You offered constructive criticism that helped me raise my game • You fixed my computer and so much more • You invited me to coffee • You answered a question I tweeted • You wrote a blog post that got me thinking • You gave a speech that rocked my world • You are the first person I look for when I enter a room full of people • You gave me an idea • You helped your grandmother when she needed you • You are one of the most present people I’ve talked to in a long time • You won’t settle for mediocre • You tell the truth • You volunteer your time, though you’re one of the busiest people I know • Your quiet, peaceful demeanor hides a mind and soul on fire • You’re brilliant • You connected me with crucial contacts for The Hub – all through a DM • You are my Pen Pal and my confidant • You want to collaborate and offered a really great idea • You’re already playing BIG in so many ways and don’t even know it • You make me want to do a happy dance • You emailed a really cool project you’re working on and want to team up • You smell really good • Your paintings and poetry show who you are • Your positive attitude makes me never want to give up • You lead change • You show me what love is • You made eye contact with everyone in the room when you talked • You made me feel at home • You introduced me to people when I didn’t know anyone • You listened to my wild ideas and said, “I think you’re on to something.” • You made me think about the real value I bring • You paint pictures with your words • Your humility is really refreshing • You agreed to meet with me & then acted like it was your honor to meet me • You told me what you needed and I’m working hard to help you get it • You have BIG ideas and take even bigger action on them • You sent me an inspiring poem • You said you were sorry, though I never noticed the slight • You invited me to your party… and lunch…and happy hour • You took the time to add me to your Twitter list • You nod and smile and that’s all that’s needed • You talked with me about things that make my heart soar

This was really fun.

Rambunctious Good

Have you ever been on a road trip and gotten so deep into a good discussion that you completely forgot where you were going? I mean, you’re still on the road – you haven’t driven off a cliff or anything – but by the time you realize where you are, it dawns on you that you should have made a left turn about an hour ago.

That’s how I’m feeling about this blog right now. So hold on, because I’m about to make a big ‘old u-turn…

There. We’re headed true north and working our way toward Playing BIG. Now that co-working is up and running, it’s time to get back to the business of shining the light on stuff that inspires me to up my game and there’s no shortage of inspiration, so let’s get started.

I recently met with a local social entrepreneur named Jacquie Bergland. Here’s her business card:

Finnegans is a beer company that donates every single penny of its profits to the FINNEGANS Community Fund, a 501(c)3 nonprofit which then disperses it to local charities fighting poverty. Sit in a room with Jacquie for five minutes and it’s easy to see why her entire workforce is made up of volunteers. She’s an inspiring person with BIG ideas and an even bigger commitment to take action toward their reality.

iPlayBIG is teaming up with Finnegans this spring to host a gathering of social entrepreneurs and thought leaders to discuss how we can play bigger for the Twin Cities. Jacquie and I agreed that while there is a lot of great work being done, more is possible by working together. This day-long event will be a unique opportunity for you to not just meet others who are working for social good, but actually collaborate on the spot in order to be, do and serve more.

Jacquie has dubbed 2010 “The Year of Magical Thinking”. Let’s sprinkle some fairy dust on this community and see just how BIG we can play by doing rambunctious good!

See You at the “Office”

You have no idea how happy it makes me to be able to put the word office in quotations.  Tomorrow is our first day co-working at Crema Café. I can’t wait to tell you how it goes. Thanks to everyone who has been a part of making this happen. There are 15 people signed up so far and more coming next week. The group is more diverse than I imagined it would be, which makes for some exciting potential collaborations.

I think one of the things I’ll work on from Crema is my next blog post.