Angels?

Angels?

Fortunately, I not only have generous people in my life (see yesterday’s blog), but also people who keep me in check when I, occasionally:-), go a little overboard...

…may be what I was talking about yesterday was angels. And not many people feel they can live up to that standard. (If they do, they should probably have their head examined!) Because, let’s face it, is there really such a phenomena as altruism? A mindset in which one only thinks beautiful, pure and selfless thoughts, always having other people’s happiness in mind? Is the wish for “peace and goodwill to all” an intrinsic, indelible part of humans? I don’t know. The jury is still out, and has been for centuries (poor chaps). God only knows the motives one has for doing and saying the things we do. And God only (thank goodness) knows what goes on in people’s minds.

Me for one, often have problems figuring out what goes on in my own head, so just beginning to guess into the mind of others is daring and risky business!

 But the point is this, and this is irrefutable (I hope!): No matter what thoughts we may have in our heads, it is what eventually comes out  that matters to other people. The thoughts are there. We fight them and surrender, invite them and corrupt them, split them and grind them, crunch them and mix them, blend them and kneed them, and then, if you are dealing with generous people, what comes out, in deed, speech or writing is this:

A beautiful gift, a delightful little package, stuffed with what we need at that precise moment: support, courage, comfort, affection, compassion, love, encouragement, challenges, constructive criticism, you need it, you name it!

And that is what being a generous person is about. Which is good in many respects, because, not being angels, it gives people some slack; Failing and stumbling are parts of being human, even the generous ones among us:-)

Generosity

One of the traits of character I appreciate most in others is generosity. Some people have an amazing ability to support and lift you. They meet your thoughts and ideas with an open mind, and when criticise do it constructively, affectionately and with respect.

They spur you on, challenge you to step out of your comfort zone to reach goals, both the ones that you knew you had, and ones you were not, until that moment, aware of.

They stay with you, even when you’re not on top of the world, and are rooting for you and your successes, when they themselves might be down in a dump. That is a hard thing to do, but for people who have a truly generous mind, this comes naturally.

These people are not motivated by personal winnings, rewards, in this world or the next. They don’t envy you your good times, winnings, successes, they enjoy them along with you, which makes them (the good things in life) even more precious

They live and breath this generosity, regardless of what relationship they have to you in the first place. You may have them in your immediate “surroundings”, but may also meet them at the other end of a telephone ”line” or in a grocery store, way out of your “neighbourhood”.

I am extremely fortunate to have several such people in my life. With all my heart I wish for you that you have too. However much I strive, I will never reach as high on the generosity scale as these people, but that shouldn’t prevent me from trying, even though I often fail.

This came to me while I was out walking today. Walking clears my mind and makes me realize many things I don’t see sitting down. But although a thought may be new to me, few thoughts are new under the sun; While I was writing this, the song You Raise Me Up, suddenly, but not surprisingly, came to my mind.

If the song is not about generosity, probably along with a heavy dash of love and affection:-), I don’t know what is.

Go ahead and listen, to this or any other recording. I know I just did:-)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_1_MydgRFZw

Sung by Josh Groban, Westlife and many others, but written by Secret Garden’s Rolf Løvland (melody) and Irish songwriter Brendan Graham (lyrics)

Dalai Lama

…and if reading No Impact Man wasn’t enough, I just had to go ahead and read The Art of Happiness by Dalai Lama. What am I, a masochist of sorts or what? Ladening myself with a bunch of ideals that I either am not able to or, even worse, not willing to live up to? What I hope, I guess, is that some things will seep through to my brain, and eventually manifest itself in, if not major, then at least some positive changes, for me, people around me, and lo and behold, don’t put me down as lacking in ambition, the world in which we live.

And looking at photos of the Lama, you have to give it to him; He does look happy! To comfort me and maybe some of you, I found some quotes of his on the internet that should be possible to identify with, even before our potential future transformation.

“Sleep is the best meditation”

 “Happiness is not something ready made. It comes from your own actions”

“We can live without religion and meditation, but we cannot survive without human affection”

“All major religious traditions carry basically the same message, that is love, compassion and forgiveness. The important thing is they should be part of our daily lives”

And last but not least:

“The purpose in our lives is to be happy”

More at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/d/dalai_lama.html

Have a great, and I wish you, a happy day!