When it comes to treating everyone with kindness and respect, Rick and Keith say count us in. Me Also. Me too.
love
I feel tremendous love these days. Everyone I see is beautiful to me. I am clear that I am choosing to experience people and life this way. The 24 hour news cycle, social situations and an election year might make it seem like there’s not a place for that right now. I disagree. With all that’s going on, I feel an even greater need to love each other. I am not distracted by people’s past, what they said or did, or what they’re going through. What I choose to see is the good in them. While that may not be what others choose, it works for me and I believe it can work for you. If you want to feel happiness and love for yourself and others, keep reading.
There’s a quote by Wayne Dyer that has helped me forgive, accept and love people regardless of who they are or what they might have done. It reads, “See the light in others and treat them as if that’s all you see.” I live my life by these words. In doing so, negative feelings and behavior, like judgment, blame and resentment, have disappeared. And in that void, unconditional love has taken residency. It’s so awesome to see the good in people.
I have been the beneficiary of unconditional love from some truly amazing people. Their grace and patience with me as a flawed human being has been humbling. Words can not express what their generosity means to me. I tell them thank you all the time but it feels like it’s not enough. The best way I know to honor the people who love me so mightily is to give love to others.
I use to think some acts were unforgivable or I was justified in withholding compassion and love from some people. When I was in that space, I was an unhappy person at my core. I later realized there was a cost to this kind of thinking and treatment of others. When love is absent from any relationship, other emotions take its place. All of which take me further and further away from who I want to be. I want to be my best. That person is loving, kind, thoughtful, compassionate, empathetic, inspiring, a work in progress and a service to others in a positive way. There’s no way I can be this human being without having love for everyone; including myself.
When I’ve reflected on my personal failures and the adverse impact to others, I use to feel blame, shame and guilt. And while there may be a need to give apologies for broken promises, there’s never a place for blame, shame and guilt in the conversation. If I am going to see the good in others and give them love, I have to do the same for myself. When I realized this, the healing began and I started to see the good in me again. This breakthrough expanded my capacity to love.
If you blame yourself or others, consider there is a deficient in your life. There are no victims or villains. There are just people to love. So let go of all negative stories and emotions that prevent you from loving others and yourself. By choosing to see the good in everyone and treating them accordingly, you give yourself an awesome gift. It’s one of peace, happiness and connection at the highest level.
Stronger mindset!
Keith
Use your precious time to learn, grow and love. All of it! The movie The Martian made me want to learn botany. And I wish I loved math more during high school. I learned math. I liked it but I didn’t love it. Had I loved it, I would have immersed myself in it. What amazing things could I be doing now if I had? All my choices today have to answer three questions in the affirmative. The questions are, “If I do this, will I learn something new that supports my goals and purpose? Will I grow from this? And, will I get an opportunity to love or learn how to love more?” If the answer to any of these questions is no, I’m not doing it. This new wonderful way of thinking is making me see old and new things in completely different ways. For example, I use to dislike camping and gardening. My last time overnight in a tent was in the Marine Corps 25 years ago. If I camp again, I will learn how to build a great fire, tap into a hidden skill set of survival, and simply love and appreciate being outdoors under the stars.
I use to associate any form of gardening with work. I thought, why work in my free time when I already do so much of that anyway. After seeing the aforementioned movie, I now think how cool it would be if I could partner with nature and the environment to produce food like the character did in The Martian. This makes me want to garden.
Over the years, I have worked with hundreds of people to achieve some awesome goals. I loved every moment of the journeys. The experiences were so rewarding. I now want to use my free time to learn how to make inspiring personal documentaries and videos. I will learn a lot, grow along the way, practice being more loving and have lots of fun. This is in line with my mindset and life purpose to make a difference.
I encourage you to use your free time in a way that is fun, serves others and makes you a better person. Your life will be more fulfilling and meaningful when you do.
Stronger Mindset!
Keith
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