mind? what mind?

I enjoy reading aloud, at least to Linda, my better half, boss, spouse, love-of-my-life.  But she only tolerates me doing it, so I don’t try to read to her very often.  It seems that the urge to read aloud runs in the family.  My granddaughter Mackenzie does it too.  Here’s a video of her reading to all of us.

Have you ever met someone that just exudes joy?  I’ve been blessed to have met two such fun-to-be-around people.  The first was Bhante Wimala (, who I had the pleasure of meeting twice.  The second came into my life only recently, and I am twice blessed.  (Yeah, I know, sounds kind of trite, don’t it?)

There are people walking the earth that are what the Christian faith calls Angels, or what those of the Buddhist faith call Bodhisattvas.  I’ve always imagined those people to be just full of joy and peace.

The second person that I have met that fits that bill, is a little girl.  She constantly is laughing, or exploring, or hugging the dogs (and trying to catch the cats to give them hugs too), or playing jokes as only a toddler can do.  (Boo! and Roar!)

Here’s an example of the effect that she has:  I dozed off for a short time a little while ago, and I had an amazing dream about this Angel or Bodhisattva. 

I was in a field, near a bodhi tree, singing and dancing with “Little Bird” as I call her, her little self wriggling and wiggling and hopping and yelling at the top of her impressively loud lungs.  There was a warmth radiating from her, and soon there were more and more people nearby, all of whom began to dance and laugh with her as they went about their business.  A joy that I have never before felt overcame us all… then I woke up.

This little girl’s name is Mackenzie Jo.  She’s my granddaughter.

Listening to: Miles Davis - Best Of Miles Davis - ‘Round Midnight

“If you want others to be happy, practice compassion.

If you want to be happy, practice compassion.”

- H. H. the Dalai Lama

It’s funny – Just a few minutes ago I was thinking about our education system here, and how teaching compassion just does not seem to be a priority.  Compassion does not seem to be important enough in our culture to put time, effort and money into including it in curriculums.  Of course I am generalizing, and there are exceptions—such as the Montessori philosophy and method of teaching young children where compassion, peace, and respect are the foundation.

Anyway, I was thinking about this, and just now I received an email which included this (very pertinent) quotation:

Such human qualities as morality, compassion, decency, wisdom and so forth have been the foundations of all civilizations. These qualities must be cultivated and sustained through systematic moral education in a conducive social environment, so that a more humane world may emerge.

- His Holiness the Dalai Lama

I did make an effort to teach my own children these things as they grew up, but I’m afraid that I didn’t do all that well at it.  My hope today is that I can make a much bigger impact with my grandchildren, now that I am learning to be more compassionate myself.  It has not been easy, and although I get better at it day by day, I have to make anew each day a vow to travel the path of those before me, to be an example myself, so that I can teach the children what it means to be compassionate to all beings, including themselves.

What exactly is “compassion”?  I can’t remember where I cribbed this from, but here’s a good definition:

The definition of compassion is: wanting others to be free from suffering. So compassion is the definition of the highest scope of motivation. It is said that to generate genuine compassion, one needs to realize that oneself is suffering, that an end to suffering is possible, and that other beings similarly want to be free from suffering.

When I think of people during the past century whose lives have been examples of true compassion, the first two that come to mind are Mother Teresa and H. H. the Fourteenth Dalai Lama.  If there has ever been a true Saint, and what Christians call an angel of compassion and mercy, it is Mother Teresa; and if there is one person that can be described as the Bodhisattva of Compassion incarnate, it is His Holiness the Dalai Lama.

Mother Teresa had this to say about compassion:

To me, God and compassion are one and the same. Compassion is the joy of sharing. It’s doing small things for the love of each other-just a smile, or carrying a bucket of water, or showing some simple kindness. These are the small things that make up compassion.

Compassion means trying to share and understand the suffering of people. And I think it’s very good when people suffer. To me, that’s really like a kiss from Jesus. And a sign, also, that this person has come so close to Jesus, sharing his passion.

It is only pride and selfishness and coldness that keep us from having compassion. When we ultimately go home to God, we are going to be judged on what we were to each other, what we did for each other, and, especially, how much love we put in that. It’s not how much we give, but how much love we put in the doing ~ that’s compassion in action.

And H. H. the Dalai Lama teaches this about compassion:

“True compassion is not just an emotional response but a firm commitment founded on reason. Because of this firm foundation, a truly compassionate attitude toward others does not change even if they behave negatively. Genuine compassion is based not on our own projections and expectations, but rather on the needs of the other: irrespective of whether another person is a close friend or an enemy, as long as that person wishes for peace and happiness and wishes to overcome suffering, then on that basis we develop genuine concern for their problem. This is genuine compassion.

For a Buddhist practitioner, the goal is to develop this genuine compassion, this genuine wish for the well-being of another, in fact for every living being throughout the universe."

At times I must be the luckiest guy in the world, because I am grandfather to two incredible children.  Mackenzie and Caiden are their names, and “cuteness is their game”.  Here are two current photos, the one of Mackenzie is from just the past few days, and the photo of Caiden was taken while I was visiting in Florida recently.

Mackenzie

Travis and Caiden

Currently listening to: Miles Davis - Bitches Brew [Disc 1] - Bitches Brew