40daysbefore40 day 22: a little drop of kindness

 kindness: 'the quality of being warmhearted and considerate and humane and sympathetic'

to sink into this blanket of human heart touches me...finding quotes to share with you, whilst i greedily gulp them to quell this aching thirst, touches me...kindness...such a raw beauty of soul...such a gem in the ocean of life...such a tonic for the wounds of our hard city edged days

i havent been particularly kind to myself i must admit...my school ma'am-ish mind with a whip in her hand (hmmm kinky ;-) ) lashing out at every 'imperfect' breath and action, or, when wrestling the spider webbed grasp of inertia, inaction!...jesus thats exhausting...and hurts too the invisible welts scarring and tender in my own mind

 why do i judge myself so harshly? is it because i look out and measure my worth on that which is non of my concern? is it all this compare and contrast which often leaves me feeling lacking? is it perhaps an ever moving standard somehow unfairly set by which no matter the hurdling and height i cannot, nor ever will, defeat??

i recall the words of swami kripalu...they stencil my soul in moments of light...
''My beloved child, break your heart no longer.
Each time you judge yourself, you break your own heart.
You stop feeding on the love, which is the wellspring of your vitality.
The time has come. Your time. To live. To celebrate,
and to see the goodness that you are…
Do not fight the dark. Just turn on the light.
Let go, and breathe into the goodness that you are.''

gets me every time...

one of my words to paper this year with its palette, is kindness...particularly towards myself...surely it is foolish of us to expect to offer another that which we do not draw from the well inside..if that well is empty, then what do we draw from?..no..it has to start with us...we have to feed our own soul with this quality that tenderizes each moment and fires to dust and ashes the hard edges of our punishing minds

i love what my darling dear soul sister, wise woman, and friend fi shared with me a few days ago...with her desire to invite kindness as her companion this year...she said that she is going to aim to be 5% kinder to herself this year...love it!..not 100%, or 80%, so the witch with the stick can wait in the wings to beat us up, but a modest and 'kind' 5%...am with you on this one honey!!

so i leave you with a gallery of words...quotes and sharings by great men and women who recognise that kindness is the only way...i hope you enjoy them and let them sink deep into the cosy nurturing space that lies within your own beautiful heart xxx

'the best part of life is not just surviving, but thriving with passion and compassion and humor and style and generosity and kindness'

maya angelou (poet, author, artist)

'i have never met a person whose greatest need was anything other than real, unconditional love. you can find it in a simple act of kindness toward someone who needs help. there is no mistaking love...it is the common fibre of life, the flame that heats our soul, energises our spirit and supplies passion to our lives'

elisabeth kubler-ross (psychiatrist and author)

'how lovely to think that noone need wait a moment. we can start now, start slowly, changing the world. how lovely that everyone, great and small, can make a contribution toward introducing justice straightaway. and you can always, always give something, even if it is only kindness!'

anne frank (diarist)

'the words of kindness are more healing to a drooping heart than balm or honey'

sarah fielding (novelist)

'we think too much and feel too little. more than machinery, we need humanity. more than cleverness, we need kindness and gentleness'

charlie chaplin

'life is mostly froth and bubble; two things stand like stone: kindness in another's trouble, courage in our own'

adam lindsay gordon

'i shall pass this way but once; any good that i can do or any kindness i can show to any human being; let me do it now. let me not defer nor neglect it, for i shall not pass this way again'

etienne de grellet (quaker missionary)

'the true essence of humankind is kindness'

tenzin gyatso (14th dalai lama)

“People are often unreasonable and self-centered. Forgive them anyway.
If you are kind, people may accuse you of ulterior motives. Be kind anyway.
If you are honest, people may cheat you. Be honest anyway.
If you find happiness, people may be jealous. Be happy anyway.
The good you do today may be forgotten tomorrow. Do good anyway.
Give the world the best you have and it may never be enough. Give your best anyway.
For you see, in the end, it is between you and God. It was never between you and them anyway.” 

mother teresa

“I hope you will have a wonderful year, that you'll dream dangerously and outrageously, that you'll make something that didn't exist before you made it, that you will be loved and that you will be liked, and that you will have people to love and to like in return. And, most importantly (because I think there should be more kindness and more wisdom in the world right now), that you will, when you need to be, be wise, and that you will always be kind.” 

neil gaiman (author)

 “Tenderness and kindness are not signs of weakness and despair, but manifestations of strength and resolution.” 

khalil gibran (poet, author)

“The simplest acts of kindness are by far more powerful then a thousand heads bowing in prayer.” 

gandhi

“For it is in giving that we receive.” 

st francis of assisi

'kindness, i've discovered, is everything in life'

isaac bashevis singer (author)