People are born free and good. What happens along the way that changes them?
My meditation will concentrate on letting go of disappointments with people whom I believed to be genuinely good and concerned with human feelings and well-being. I have met a lot of them in the last three years. But one more is tilting the scales and I have to let go of the disappointment because it is making me overwhelmingly sad. I am letting go to create space for something much more useful and positive that my body and mind will need. As long as my family and at least one friend believes and loves me for "the good, the bad and the ugly" that I am, I will live peacefully just with that as my soul food. As long as I have my mom, my brothers, my husband, my son and a trusted friend (near or far) who prays for me in my daily struggles, I will be forever the most fortunate and the richest person in the world! I need nothing more!
Usually, they say to start a meditation sit comfortably in a quiet place. I want you to sit in the most crowded and noisy place you can find. It can be a street downtown, a subway station, you get the point. It won't be hard to find. Surround yourself with voiced and sounds. Close your eyes. Listen to the noise and start counting how many times your have been disappointed. I believe that your frustration will grow and you will become annoyed. Think about all the emotional vampires, acidic people that have let you down and brought negative energy into your life. Think about all the things you should have done at this point in your life, all the titles and accomplishments you should have earned so far. Let them go like a bunch of colourful balloons. Let them fly away. Slowly breath in as much air as you possibly can and imagine you are breathing out all of those together with all the noise that is happening around you. Can you feel how it is beginning to quiet down? Breath some more and more. Now. Start thinking about one thing or person that makes you happy, brings a smile on your face. Breathe in that thing or person and bring it to every inch of your body. Smile. Be happy with what you have. Always go for your goals but be thankful for what you have. Look around at all the objects and material things you possess. Look at your family and friends, neighbours and co-workers that are always there for you. Keep looking within you. This is what's making you happy. Be proud of who you are. Bring it outwards to the people around you. Don't judge, don't envy, don't belittle. We are all enough that is needed.
My son always reminds me of a story taken from the Native American mythology. There was a little girl who lived with her Inuit family. She was always told not to go to the river by herself because the river people would want to take her. However, as all youngsters, she was very curious and she went to check it out for herself. And as she was told the river people did want to take her. She talked her way out of it just by promising to bring all her of siblings with her. They let her go but reminded her that, "Promise is a Promise." She came home and quickly told her mother what happened. The mother, as smart woman as she was thought of a plan that would allow her keep the promise but save her children. Next, the mother lured the river people to the village where they had no powers. At the same time she told her daughter to quickly go to the river and take all her siblings there. They called out the river people a few times, then run back home. This way the river people had no chance to claim what was promised by the little girl. Clever isn't it? This is a bit disappointing to me that every promise can be broken, if you know how to do it. My son however, knows the meaning of "promise is a promise" as it should be meant. If you can't keep your promises, don't make them.
I daily practice smiling at strangers. It is amazing. There is so much happiness in it. I get different responses depending on their age, sex and social status. Once on my walk to work a man leaned over from his car window and asked me what I was doing for living because it looked like I was a millionaire going on vacation. He was an older landscaping worker on his way to the site. Most of the time people complement on my smile. And I don't have a great smile. It's A smile. But it is so striking and so unusual these days that it becomes "a great smile." Cyclists are natural at smiling back. I love to smile at senior citizens the most. They always return a smile but with a hesitation at first. It's almost as if they didn't know it before and were just starting to learn how to smile. But when I am done with them, we exchange hellos like good friends! My day is made! My job is done! I bring a little bit of smile to their day and for me, I get happy.
Please do tell, how do you make yourself happy?
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