Compassion

My angels guided me to this reading today, taken from Tian Dayton’s book The Soul’s Companion. It seemed apt for Christmas which stirs up so much for many of us, as a reminder to go gently.

Compassion

I will have compassion. I will look beyond the surface into what is really going on. Before I judge a person for their illness or foibles, I will take time to wonder what got them where they are. If those I know have to prop themselves up on what seem petty vanities, I will look a little further. I will try to imagine the inner emptiness of those who do not feel that who they are or what they have is enough. I will ask myself why it is that they feel the need to pretend, to pose, to hide who they really are. If they were truly confident of a situation, they would not have to push it in my face. If what they say are really were theirs, they would simply be it. When I feel myself getting short tempered, I will try to understand what they are really wanting from me, but do not have the courage to ask. I will take an extra minute when I am feeling pressured by someone to wonder what lies behind it.

I will look with compassion.

One of my therapists used to always say that the capacity to wonder about others and how they behave and react can often bring us together instead of force even more separation and deepen our upset or angst. We cannot always know the motives driving others, or even ourselves, at times and so it pays to keep an open mind and keep a sense of wonder about the situation before we judge.