To be here is immense. -- Rainer Maria Rilke
There
is a kindness that dwells deep down in things; it presides everywhere, often in
the places we least expect. The world can be harsh and negative, but if we
remain generous and patient, kindness inevitably reveals itself. Something deep
in the human soul seems to depend on the presence of kindness; something
instinctive in us expects it, and once we sense it we are able to trust and open
ourselves. Here in Conamara, the mountains are terse and dark; left to
themselves they would make for a brooding atmosphere. However, everywhere around
and in between there are lakes. The surface of these lakes takes on the
variations of the surrounding light to create subtle diffusions of colour. Thus
their presence qualifies the whole landscape with a sense of warmth and
imagination. If we did not feel that some ultimate kindness holds sway, we would
feel like outsiders confronted on every side by a world toward which we could
make no real bridges.
"The
word kindness has a gentle sound that seems to echo the presence of
compassionate goodness. When someone is kind to you, you feel understood and
seen. There is no judgement or harsh perception directed toward you. Kindness
has gracious eyes; it is not small-minded or competitive; it wants nothing back
for itself. Kindness strikes a resonance with the depths of your own heart; it
also suggests that your vulnerability, though somehow exposed, is not taken
advantage of; rather, it has become an occasion for dignity and empathy.
Kindness casts a different light, an evening light that has the depth of colour
and patience to illuminate what is complex and rich in difference.
"Despite
all the darkness, human hope is based on the instinct that at the deepest level
of reality some intimate kindness holds sway. This is the heart of blessing. To
believe in blessing is to believe that our being here, our very presence in the
world, is itself the first gift, the primal blessing. As Rilke says: Hier zu
sein ist so viel — to be here is immense. Nowhere does the silence of the
infinite lean so intensely as around the form of a newly born infant. Once we
arrive, we enter into the inheritance of everything that has preceded us; we
become heirs to the world. To be born is to be chosen. To be created and come to
birth is to be blessed. Some primal kindness chose us and brought us through the
forest of dreaming until we could emerge into the clearance of individuality,
with a path of life opening before us through the world.
"The
beginning often holds the clue to everything that follows. Given the nature of
our beginning, it is no wonder that our hearts are imbued with longing for
beauty, meaning, order, creativity, compassion, and love. We approach the world
with this roster of longings and expect that in some way the world will respond
and confirm our desire. Our longing knows it cannot force the fulfilment of its
desire; yet it does instinctively expect that primal benevolence to respond to
it. This is the threshold where blessing comes alive.
Be The Change: Think back to when someone did
something kind for you. How did it make you feel? See if these feelings can
guide you in any way today.
Sourced from www.dailygood.org
Sourced from www.dailygood.org
