So many good responses reminding me to be gentle with myself. I often am and then some remnant of that socialization that goes back to the Puritans (or further) asks if I’m letting myself off the hook too easily. Thinking of it as gentleness makes it a positive.
I can be more gentle with myself. I am going thru an extremely difficult & emotional time currently. This new situation has been quite difficult & it is hard. I feel so fragile. I need to be loving, kind & gentle with me.
With the horrific images emerging from the Middle East, my gentle prayer is for the people. Not for the tribes and nations, not the arguments and disputes about right and wrong, but for the people, the children, the humanity, the precious lives.
With myself. I often am the harshest to my own self, and I could definitely meet myself with more gentleness. The gentleness and kindness I give to others should be given to myself as well. I am my own greatest enemy but I should instead be my own greatest love. and that’s something I definitely need to work on.
Good morning! What a powerful comment! Yes!! It should start with us! why is this so hard? your comment sure gets to my heart, I too need to be kind to myself. Thank you for this powerful reminder.
Everywhere! Everywhere and everyone deserve gentleness. Today my husband and I are going on a bike ride. I hope to be gentle and kind with those that i meet on the way. I also will try to be gentle with myself….I will try to do my best on this bike ride and not complain!! Wishing everyone a very good and a very Blessed Day.
Where in my life is there an opportunity to meet something with gentleness?
My immediate thought was “every where.” Gentleness is always a choice and it does not negate the need to hold myself accountable in difficult situations. But what it does do is help me respond instead of react to what life is offering to me at this time. It’s mantra is “try a little tenderness.”
I like to bake and yeast is the organism that makes dough rise in my homemade bread. However, if I get the water too hot when mixing the yeast into the flour, the yeast dies and the bread not only does not rise, it can be as heavy as a brick! The temperature of the water matters. The way I knead the dough matters. The yeast needs my care and concern to do its job.
This question is a much needed reminder that I need to give both my mind and body the same tender care and concern I give to the yeast. “The old gray mare ain’t what she use to be!” I spent last Friday in the ER and now I face a series of medical appointments that may or may not be helpful. There is definitely an opportunity here. May I approach the weeks ahead with gentleness, mindful care, concern and most importantly willingness to accept what is and go with the flow.
I share some excerpts from an article by Pema Chodron below that speaks to me about the power of gentleness.
“The question, then, is not only how to uncover our fundamental tenderness and warmth, but also how to abide there with the fragile, often bittersweet vulnerability. How can we relax and open to the uncertainty of it? How can we face all the fear and uncertainty and not close up again?…
“We can use this time of fear and insecurity to connect with the natural warmth of our heart. It has the power to heal ourselves and others…When we feel fear, when we feel discomfort of any kind, it can connect us at the heart with all the other people who are feeling fear and discomfort. When things fall apart and we can’t get the pieces back together, when we lose something dear to us, when the whole thing is just not working and we don’t know what to do, this is the time when the natural warmth of tenderness, the warmth of empathy and kindness, are just waiting to be uncovered, just waiting to be embraced….Our own suffering, if we turn toward it, can open us to a loving relationship with the world. When you touch your sorrow or fear, your anger or jealousy, you are touching everybody’s jealousy, everybody’s fear and sorrow. You wake up in the middle of the night with an anxiety attack and when you can fully experience the taste and smell of it, you are sharing the anxiety and fear of all humanity. People’s stories are different, their situations are different, but the experience is the same. Instead of your distress becoming all about you, it can become your link with everyone all over the world who is in the same predicament.”
Thank you for the Pema Chodron excerpt, Carol. I don’t remember often enough that my experience is everyone’s experience. We all feel the same feelings, just in different contexts.
Peace and all good to you as you address the medical issues. 🙏🏻💐
Thank you, Carol.
I love Pema Chodron. Her book
“when things fall apart” was crucial
for me, when my life fell apart.
I hope your current medical
issues are addressed and can be
ameliorated.
Your attitude humbles me. 🙏
Carol, thank you for posting Pema Chodron’s writing. This spoke directly to me. Where might I find this?
Sending you good wishes for your upcoming medical visits. Stay strong.
Good Morning Carol, Thank you for your thoughts this morning…you always give me something to think about!
I am also wishing you all good things as you go to your medical appointments. Wishing goof healt and positive interactions. Love and Blessings, my friend.
More than anything, I think being
more gentle with myself would go
a long way. I am much harder on
myself than I am with others.
I think I’ve posted this before,
and I can’t believe Bruce Lee
quotes run around my head.
What can I say, I’m a child of the 70s.
Don’t speak negatively about yourself,
even as a joke. Your body doesn’t
know the difference. Words are
energy and they cast spells, that’s
why it’s called spelling. Change the
way you speak about yourself, and
you can change your life.
– Bruce Lee
As I read this now, the last line rings
so true. Change is so difficult, but it
starts with a thought.
Everywhere! I need to meet myself with gentleness as I sort thru my never-ending to-do list. I need to meet my husband with gentleness as he does the same. I need to meet my dogs with gentleness as they are only asking for the attention they deserve. Everywhere I go today, I will have the opportunity.
There is always opportunities!
Yesterday, I took my husband to the ER. I tried to be present to the situation and not panic. I was very impressed with the gentleness we received from the medical personnel. Now it is our turn to bring gentleness to ourselves as we move through this crisis and accept the gentleness from others.
Right now it is in and around the barn, wood piles, the garage, the waning vegetable garden, haystacks and anywhere else the calico and the black kitten’s roam. Both are very friendly and like to be stroked now and then. They are amusing, strong in their play and climbing but feel very delicate to the touch. They have been here for a bit better than a month. The rodents have already thinned out and headed for the hills! Pooch has even been tolerating some of their nonsense. All young beings need some gentleness. So do older beings. Have a good and gentle day everyone!
Oh interesting! Thanks Michele. Though it made me think that everyone BUT farmers would have the time to even notice it! (Which does contribute, in all honesty, with some sadness, to why I am no longer a farmer!)
Good Morning, Joseph, I love the picture you paint of the kittens. What a delight to have two new lives running about…happy to be doing a job and happy to be in a good and loving home. All good things to you, my friend.
Remote working – learning a new system/pdf app … I’m being hard on myself – I just need to take it each day and I will eventually get it. I’m grateful for the opportunity.
Everywhere! Gentleness of heart and spirit is a balm that soothes and calms whatever moment it meets. The trick, for me at least, is remembering to open the door and invite it in.
Thank you Kevin! I will choose the word gentleness for may day as I go into the world. I will start with me. I so appreciate your comments every morning, thank you for always participating!
Thank you, Ana Maria, for your kind words here. Participating, and reading the reflections of others in this space is a continuing joy for me, year after year.
My best to you my friend.
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Be gentle and love yourself aa route planner and good things will come to you.
So many good responses reminding me to be gentle with myself. I often am and then some remnant of that socialization that goes back to the Puritans (or further) asks if I’m letting myself off the hook too easily. Thinking of it as gentleness makes it a positive.
I can be more gentle with myself. I am going thru an extremely difficult & emotional time currently. This new situation has been quite difficult & it is hard. I feel so fragile. I need to be loving, kind & gentle with me.
Loving kindness to you PKR.
With the horrific images emerging from the Middle East, my gentle prayer is for the people. Not for the tribes and nations, not the arguments and disputes about right and wrong, but for the people, the children, the humanity, the precious lives.
I agree wholeheartedly Don. I pray for all the innocent people. 🙏🏻
With myself. I often am the harshest to my own self, and I could definitely meet myself with more gentleness. The gentleness and kindness I give to others should be given to myself as well. I am my own greatest enemy but I should instead be my own greatest love. and that’s something I definitely need to work on.
Good morning! What a powerful comment! Yes!! It should start with us! why is this so hard? your comment sure gets to my heart, I too need to be kind to myself. Thank you for this powerful reminder.
Everywhere! Everywhere and everyone deserve gentleness. Today my husband and I are going on a bike ride. I hope to be gentle and kind with those that i meet on the way. I also will try to be gentle with myself….I will try to do my best on this bike ride and not complain!! Wishing everyone a very good and a very Blessed Day.
Where in my life is there an opportunity to meet something with gentleness?
My immediate thought was “every where.” Gentleness is always a choice and it does not negate the need to hold myself accountable in difficult situations. But what it does do is help me respond instead of react to what life is offering to me at this time. It’s mantra is “try a little tenderness.”
I like to bake and yeast is the organism that makes dough rise in my homemade bread. However, if I get the water too hot when mixing the yeast into the flour, the yeast dies and the bread not only does not rise, it can be as heavy as a brick! The temperature of the water matters. The way I knead the dough matters. The yeast needs my care and concern to do its job.
This question is a much needed reminder that I need to give both my mind and body the same tender care and concern I give to the yeast. “The old gray mare ain’t what she use to be!” I spent last Friday in the ER and now I face a series of medical appointments that may or may not be helpful. There is definitely an opportunity here. May I approach the weeks ahead with gentleness, mindful care, concern and most importantly willingness to accept what is and go with the flow.
I share some excerpts from an article by Pema Chodron below that speaks to me about the power of gentleness.
“The question, then, is not only how to uncover our fundamental tenderness and warmth, but also how to abide there with the fragile, often bittersweet vulnerability. How can we relax and open to the uncertainty of it? How can we face all the fear and uncertainty and not close up again?…
“We can use this time of fear and insecurity to connect with the natural warmth of our heart. It has the power to heal ourselves and others…When we feel fear, when we feel discomfort of any kind, it can connect us at the heart with all the other people who are feeling fear and discomfort. When things fall apart and we can’t get the pieces back together, when we lose something dear to us, when the whole thing is just not working and we don’t know what to do, this is the time when the natural warmth of tenderness, the warmth of empathy and kindness, are just waiting to be uncovered, just waiting to be embraced….Our own suffering, if we turn toward it, can open us to a loving relationship with the world. When you touch your sorrow or fear, your anger or jealousy, you are touching everybody’s jealousy, everybody’s fear and sorrow. You wake up in the middle of the night with an anxiety attack and when you can fully experience the taste and smell of it, you are sharing the anxiety and fear of all humanity. People’s stories are different, their situations are different, but the experience is the same. Instead of your distress becoming all about you, it can become your link with everyone all over the world who is in the same predicament.”
Thank you for the Pema Chodron excerpts. Sending you positive energy as you navigate your medical appts.
Thank you for the Pema Chodron excerpt, Carol. I don’t remember often enough that my experience is everyone’s experience. We all feel the same feelings, just in different contexts.
Peace and all good to you as you address the medical issues. 🙏🏻💐
Thank you, Carol.
I love Pema Chodron. Her book
“when things fall apart” was crucial
for me, when my life fell apart.
I hope your current medical
issues are addressed and can be
ameliorated.
Your attitude humbles me. 🙏
Carol, thank you for posting Pema Chodron’s writing. This spoke directly to me. Where might I find this?
Sending you good wishes for your upcoming medical visits. Stay strong.
PKR, It was in the Lion’s Roar magazine. Here’s a link that should get you to it.
https://www.lionsroar.com/discover-the-healing-power-in-your-heart/
Good Morning Carol, Thank you for your thoughts this morning…you always give me something to think about!
I am also wishing you all good things as you go to your medical appointments. Wishing goof healt and positive interactions. Love and Blessings, my friend.
More than anything, I think being
more gentle with myself would go
a long way. I am much harder on
myself than I am with others.
I think I’ve posted this before,
and I can’t believe Bruce Lee
quotes run around my head.
What can I say, I’m a child of the 70s.
Don’t speak negatively about yourself,
even as a joke. Your body doesn’t
know the difference. Words are
energy and they cast spells, that’s
why it’s called spelling. Change the
way you speak about yourself, and
you can change your life.
– Bruce Lee
As I read this now, the last line rings
so true. Change is so difficult, but it
starts with a thought.
I enjoyed this Bruce Lee quote too, thank you for sharing it.
Reminds me of the first of the Four Agreements, Be impeccable with your words. That includes words to ourselves. Thank you for the quote, Charlie.
I love the Bruce Lee quote. Some of us have quite a negative saboteur in our heads. Lee speaks wisdom. Thanks for sharing the quote.
Wow!! This is powerful Charlie! Thank you so much for sharing!!
Everywhere! I need to meet myself with gentleness as I sort thru my never-ending to-do list. I need to meet my husband with gentleness as he does the same. I need to meet my dogs with gentleness as they are only asking for the attention they deserve. Everywhere I go today, I will have the opportunity.
There is always opportunities!
Yesterday, I took my husband to the ER. I tried to be present to the situation and not panic. I was very impressed with the gentleness we received from the medical personnel. Now it is our turn to bring gentleness to ourselves as we move through this crisis and accept the gentleness from others.
Sending you and your husband some well wishes, calmness and speedy recovery.
I hope your husband is home, Yram. Sending you both peace and calm.
Dear Yram, Wishing that this health crisis passes….and you have peace in your day. Sending Blessings to you and your husband.
Right now it is in and around the barn, wood piles, the garage, the waning vegetable garden, haystacks and anywhere else the calico and the black kitten’s roam. Both are very friendly and like to be stroked now and then. They are amusing, strong in their play and climbing but feel very delicate to the touch. They have been here for a bit better than a month. The rodents have already thinned out and headed for the hills! Pooch has even been tolerating some of their nonsense. All young beings need some gentleness. So do older beings. Have a good and gentle day everyone!
Enjoyed reading this very much, Joseph! Reminds me of my early farming days.
Happy National Farmer’s day to you both 🙂
Oh interesting! Thanks Michele. Though it made me think that everyone BUT farmers would have the time to even notice it! (Which does contribute, in all honesty, with some sadness, to why I am no longer a farmer!)
Good Morning, Joseph, I love the picture you paint of the kittens. What a delight to have two new lives running about…happy to be doing a job and happy to be in a good and loving home. All good things to you, my friend.
I can meet myself with gentleness. Life can be hard and I’m just doing the best that I can.
Loving Kindness your way Laura.
Thanks, Joseph.
Remote working – learning a new system/pdf app … I’m being hard on myself – I just need to take it each day and I will eventually get it. I’m grateful for the opportunity.
In the limited opportunities of a fragile relationship that is in desperate need of repair.
Wishing you the best as you repair this fragile relationship. May you give yourself the kindness you give to others.
Everywhere! Gentleness of heart and spirit is a balm that soothes and calms whatever moment it meets. The trick, for me at least, is remembering to open the door and invite it in.
Thank you Kevin! I will choose the word gentleness for may day as I go into the world. I will start with me. I so appreciate your comments every morning, thank you for always participating!
Thank you, Ana Maria, for your kind words here. Participating, and reading the reflections of others in this space is a continuing joy for me, year after year.
My best to you my friend.