Run Towards Kindness

Gustav Klimt - Portrait of Beatrice Portinari, 1891

“Your empathy will be your salvation. When in doubt, run toward kindness.” Tennessee Williams

“Dream softly of your sinless brother, who unites with you in holy innocence. And from this dream the Lord of Heaven will Himself awaken His beloved Son. Dream of your brother’s kindnesses instead of dwelling in your dreams on his mistakes. Select his thoughtfulness to dream about instead of counting up the hurts he gave. Forgiveå him his illusions, and give thanks to him for all the helpfulness he gave. And do not brush aside his many gifts because he is not perfect in your dreams. He represents his Father, Whom you see as offering both life and death to you.” 

A Course in Miracles T-27.VII.15:1-7

“If selfishness has given place to kindness, we shall regard our neighbor unselfishly, and bless them that curse us; but we shall never meet this great duty simply by asking that it may be done. There is a cross to be taken up before we can enjoy the fruition of our hope and faith.” 

Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 11-16

Forgive Yourself and Begin Again

Photo courtesy of Blake Lasater 

My hope for today is that everyone will love each other. Whether it's your child, spouse, friends, or strangers, just love them. A rather well-known seer once advised us that it's easy to love those who love you, but to love your enemies, to bless those who persecute you, that is the difficult task. This advice is particularly pertinent today, when it seems almost everyone is determined to make someone an enemy. A dear friend told a story about herself in which she was terse with a loved one over a small act which made no difference in the scheme of life. During these days of high emotions and hateful rhetorical speech, we may become ensnared in the collective turmoil. So let's be aware that we might not be feeling our own emotions, but rather those being sold to us by people who will benefit from our angst and division. Whatever the case may be, let’s just love. It's not easy to understand each other under the best of circumstances, and with great unrest afoot, it can seem almost impossible. But it is not. Sometimes we may falter, but forgive yourself and begin again. We always get a second chance to be kind...

“Trials are but lessons that you failed to learn presented once again, so where you made a faulty choice before you now can make a better one, and thus escape all pain that what you chose before has brought to you. In every difficulty, all distress, and each perplexity Christ calls to you and gently says, ‘My brother, choose again.’”
—A Course in Miracles T-31.VIII.3:1-2

“Students are advised by the author to be charitable and kind, not only towards differing forms of religion and medicine, but to those who hold these differing opinions. Let us be faithful in pointing the way through Christ, as we understand it, but let us also be careful always to ‘judge righteous judgment,’ and never to condemn rashly.”
—Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 444:13-19

Those Who Walk the Talk

Who are your heroes? After watching the movie “Hidden Figures”, which tells how three women were integral in getting the United States space program off the ground, my heroes are every woman who has continued to do her best in the presence of ugly racism. This movie helped me realize the depth of prejudice; the senselessness of racism and sexism. Every time this understanding reaches a deeper level within me, it becomes more difficult to understand its origins. How did we become a society which looks down on someone because of their skin color, gender, or social standing? Social standing, what the heck does that even mean? I look forward to the day we see people for who they are, appreciating qualities such as kindness, intelligence, integrity, morality, creativity, and such. My heroes today, specifically, are the women who are running for political office, speaking truth to lies, showing us the meaning of kindness and integrity through their actions. I’m sure we all have heroes in our own communities, those who walk the talk. Let’s write them notes, thanking them for their goodness and honesty — because they probably don't know how valued they are!

“It takes great learning both to realize and to accept the fact that the world has nothing to give. What can the sacrifice of nothing mean? It cannot mean that you have less because of it. There is no sacrifice in the world’s terms that does not involve the body. Think a while about what the world calls sacrifice. Power, fame, money, physical pleasure; who is the ‘hero’ to whom all these things belong? ⁷Could they mean anything except to a body? Yet a body cannot evaluate. By seeking after such things the mind associates itself with the body, obscuring its Identity and losing sight of what it really is.”
—Course in Miracles M-13.2:1-9

"Ignorance, pride, or prejudice closes the door to whatever is not stereotyped."
—Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 144:25

Loving Gratitude

Having double below-the-knee amputations, my ability to go places is limited. I can easily move from my wheelchair to different seating in my home, or get into a car, or into my handicap-accessible shower. I get by with a little help from my friends to go to my job as accompanist in a local church, or to attend my book club meetings, or anywhere which does not have stairs. The gratitude I feel to and for friends who take me places and load my moving chair into their vehicles is immense. I play competitive bridge with friends and strangers online; I compete with friends across town or on the other side of the globe in the scrabble-like game, Words With Friends. Thanks to the wonder of the internet I can watch any documentary, movie, or television show ever made — without commercials! Thanks to our wonderful library system, I can read or listen to thousands of books. There has never been a more wonderful time to be housebound! We had our monthly book club meeting this evening. I am thankful for the wonderful women who loaded me into a car and got me there to enjoy great conversation and food. My heart is full …

“The less mind there is manifested in matter the better. When the unthinking lobster loses its claw, the claw grows again. If the Science of Life were understood, it would be found that the senses of Mind are never lost and that matter has no sensation. Then the human limb would be replaced as readily as the lobster’s claw, — not with an artificial limb, but with the genuine one.”
—Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 489:1-9

“The miracle is much like the body in that both are learning aids for facilitating a state in which they become unnecessary. When spirit’s original state of direct communication is reached, neither the body nor the miracle serves any purpose. While you believe you are in a body, however, you can choose between loveless and miraculous channels of expression.You can make an empty shell, but you cannot express nothing at all. You can wait, delay, paralyze yourself, or reduce your creativity almost to nothing. But you cannot abolish it. You can destroy your medium of communication, but not your potential. You did not create yourself.”
—A Course in Miracles T-1.V.1:1-8

Better Views of Humanity

Photo credit: Kailey Jones

When did you last tell a lie? We may tell “polite” lies, designed to protect loved ones’ feelings, or we might commit the indiscretion which is referred to as a white lie. But what about a lie told to benefit yourself, without caring who it hurts or what harm it causes? And what of cheating? Maybe you moved your Monopoly piece too many squares during family game night, but how about taking goods and services from people and refusing to pay for them, or maybe taking a possession from someone — outright theft? I don’t know many, if any, people who do this. Everyone I interact with has a higher sense of integrity and a moral standard which precludes such actions. Actually, most people I know would never consider lying or stealing or cheating, be it a small indiscretion or a major event. It always comes as a surprise to me when I witness blatant misconduct in public officials, movie stars, ministers — anyone, anywhere. I remind myself constantly that everything is either expressing Love or calling out for love. And so I shall not look the other way, and I will do my best to answer that call. Namaste...

“The peace of mind which the advanced teachers of God experience is largely due to their perfect honesty. It is only the wish to deceive that makes for war. No one at one with himself can even conceive of conflict. Conflict is the inevitable result of self-deception, and self-deception is dishonesty. There is no challenge to a teacher of God. Challenge implies doubt, and the trust on which God’s teachers rest secure makes doubt impossible. Therefore they can only succeed. In this, as in all things, they are honest. They can only succeed, because they never do their will alone. They choose for all mankind; for all the world and all things in it; for the unchanging and unchangeable beyond appearances; and for the Son of God and his Creator. How could they not succeed? They choose in perfect honesty, sure of their choice as of themselves.” 
—A Course in Miracles M-4.II.2:1-1

“Take away wealth, fame, and social organizations, which weigh not one jot in the balance of God, and we get clearer views of Principle. Break up cliques, level wealth with honesty, let worth be judged according to wisdom, and we get better views of humanity."
—Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 239:5

Hypnotized?

Installation at Meow Wolf, Denver, CO

Most of us acknowledge that certain prescription drugs cause adverse reactions, perhaps causing side effects such as sleep-driving or other unconscious activities. We know this, and we have a choice in whether or not to reap the meager benefits anyway. But what if we were told that our favorite food caused us to believe things which simply are not true, or made us buy things, or perhaps think the earth is flat? Would we stop eating it, or would we say, "Oh, I know when I'm being manipulated and I can eat chocolate and still think independently."? There is a documentary called "The Social Dilemma" and it tells us in detail how we are being manipulated by Facebook, in particular. This platform is the reason many people have become flat earthers, believing the world is flat, and there is a great ice wall at the perimeter, and you will be put into jail if you get there. Others believe in something called pizzagate, believing there is a network of well-known people kidnapping children and performing horrendous atrocities. These are the extremes, but what of the influences which are much more subtle? I leave you with this quote from a NetFlix documentary, posted at Independent.co.uk: “It’s easy to think that it’s just a few stupid people who get convinced,” warns the engineer who created the rogue Youtube algorithm, “but the algorithm is getting smarter and smarter every day. Today they’re convincing people that the Earth is flat, but tomorrow they will be convincing YOU of something.” The teachings we are studying help us see Truth, even as we recognize error and deny its reality. And I am grateful …

"As named in Christian Science, animal magnetism or hypnotism is the specific term for error, or mortal mind. It is the false belief that mind is in matter, and is both evil and good; that evil is as real as good and more powerful. This belief has not one quality of Truth. It is either ignorant or malicious. The malicious form of hypnotism ultimates in moral idiocy."
—Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 103:18

“Miracles honor you because you are lovable. They dispel illusions about yourself and perceive the light in you. They thus atone for your errors by freeing you from your nightmares. By releasing your mind from the imprisonment of your illusions, they restore your sanity.”
—A Course in Miracles T-1.I.33:1-4

Speak Truth, Time and Again

Photo courtesy of Blake Lasater

How many people must repeat a truth before everyone begins to see it, too? Mark Twain supposedly said a lie would travel around the world while the truth was still lacing up its boots. I'm not sure that's true today, with the internet connecting everyone in its web. I'd bet the truth will travel just as fast, if enough people speak it and write it!  Aristarchus first noticed the sun was stationary somewhere around 300 B.C., then it took a number of centuries before Copernicus revealed this truth with a mathematical model in the 1500s. Even then, Copernicus was so afraid of religious leaders, who thought everything was centered around them, that he didn't tell anyone until he was on his deathbed. Sound familiar? What about the earth being flat, railroad tracks coming together, mirages, and other such illusions? How long did it take for us to understand what was happening? While most of us know these things, I saw a horrifying statistic recently which said that 1/4 of the people still believe the sun revolves around the earth every 24 hours. Knowing the depth of ignorance (lack of knowledge) makes it even more important for each and every one of us to speak out about things which we know to be true. Research is easier than ever and more fun than it was 50 years ago. So pick a fact, study it thoroughly through a variety of sources, and tell everyone you know! 

 "Agassiz, the celebrated naturalist and author, has wisely said, 'Every great scientific truth goes through three stages. First, people say it conflicts with the Bible. Next, they say it has been discovered before. Lastly, they say they have always believed it." 

—Mary Baker Eddy - Science & Health Page 104:8

“Call to your Father, certain that His Voice will answer. He Himself has promised this. And He Himself will place a spark of truth within your mind wherever you give up a false belief, a dark illusion of your own reality and what love means. He will shine through your idle thoughts today, and help you understand the truth of love. In loving gentleness He will abide with you, as you allow His Voice to teach love’s meaning to your clean and open mind. And He will bless the lesson with His Love.” 

—A Course in Miracles W-127.9:1-6