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Gratefulness
I am not only grateful for “good” experiences but also for the “bad” ones too, because it is these experiences that bless us with wisdom.
Honestly, there was this petty argument I got into a couple years ago that I think about sometimes. Letting it go would probably be very liberating for me. Resentment over something that happened a long time ago probably isn’t good for my mental health.
This weekend, when I went to the Missouri Botanical Gardens, I found out they had a Chinese Garden and a Japanese Garden! It was kind of interesting going through a place in the Midwest and seeing all the stupas and shrines to the Buddha. It kind of gave me flashbacks to when I visited Vietnam. The beauty of the gardens was amazing though!
I definitely have enough material stuff-probably too much, in fact. I know I have enough when I don’t wonder where my next meal will come from, when I can afford education and travel, and when I have a comfortable place to sleep, study, and live. Beyond this, I am in need of nothing.
I have a roof over my head; graduate-level education; easy access to food; frequent opportunities for travel; an ability to be pulled over by police without wondering whether it is because of my race, gender, or ethnicity; the ability to walk around the places I live without worrying about violence or being attacked; parental financial support; and the ability to apply for jobs without worrying that I will be discriminated against. I can use these privileges to share my economic privilege wit...
I have a roof over my head; graduate-level education; easy access to food; frequent opportunities for travel; an ability to be pulled over by police without wondering whether it is because of my race, gender, or ethnicity; the ability to walk around the places I live without worrying about violence or being attacked; parental financial support; and the ability to apply for jobs without worrying that I will be discriminated against. I can use these privileges to share my economic privilege with those in need; to take what I have learned in my education and apply it to ethical living and social justice; to take what I have learned from travel and apply it the same way; to support oppressed communities in whatever way I can that they would support (without resorting to “white man’s burden” activism); to continue living for others, rather than myself, since I have the privilege to know that I will likely not be hurt by violence; and to use the ability to work without discrimination to serve those who are oppressed or don’t have the same privilege.
Yes; I cherish life’s journey by living into it. Whatever is happening, pleasant or not, I try to live into fully, so that I can find a lesson in the experience and grow in wisdom through life’s journey.
I imagine myself as part of a spiritually aware community of people who are committed to social justice and inner transformation. I imagine myself being committed to relationship with those who join in this work and to be a friend to those who need liberation from what keeps them from their highest potential. This will take a lot of inner work and reflection, but I believe that with practice, I can begin to live a life of justice and wisdom in community with others.
Craft a story that works for me and that does not slip into either victimhood or ignoring conflicts in life. Rather, craft a story that acknowledges the problems but remembers how those later led to better things in the future.
The most meaningful thing I can do with my life is whatever my dharma is. To be honest, I’m not sure what I’m here for yet. I’m pretty sure I’m supposed to be a preacher and am supposed to study UFOs (yeah. I know. Sounds weird, but that’s what I perceive the signs to be pointing to). Other than that, however, I’m not sure how the whole trajectory of the rest of my life is supposed to go. For now, I guess the most meaningful thing I can do is to do what I s...
The most meaningful thing I can do with my life is whatever my dharma is. To be honest, I’m not sure what I’m here for yet. I’m pretty sure I’m supposed to be a preacher and am supposed to study UFOs (yeah. I know. Sounds weird, but that’s what I perceive the signs to be pointing to). Other than that, however, I’m not sure how the whole trajectory of the rest of my life is supposed to go. For now, I guess the most meaningful thing I can do is to do what I should be doing right now, which is being a student who works hard.
Right now, as part of Missourians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty, I’m trying to save the life of a person on death row whose execution is likely to be botched because of his medical condition. It will likely be a painful, horrible death if it goes down. I’m praying that what I do makes a difference, but the situation looks dire right now, despite the fact that Russell Bucklew has clearly shown remorse. Please sign this petition to help me, if you are willing. https://...
Right now, as part of Missourians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty, I’m trying to save the life of a person on death row whose execution is likely to be botched because of his medical condition. It will likely be a painful, horrible death if it goes down. I’m praying that what I do makes a difference, but the situation looks dire right now, despite the fact that Russell Bucklew has clearly shown remorse. Please sign this petition to help me, if you are willing. https://www.change.org/p/sparerussell
The old architecture of this old building of the library at my graduate school that has been around since 1850 is amazing, with its Greco-Roman style pillars decorated with plant designs and the stain-glassed windows on the wall-all a great reminder of Eden Theological Seminary’s spiritual heritage!
Part of me has doubts that we co-create reality with our thoughts, and these doubts, I feel, may be a limitation on me if it is the case that we really do co-create reality with our thoughts. I feel that further research on psi phenomena and Law of Attraction controlled, double-blind studies can help me to navigate the truth behind this inquiry.
When I was asking people about getting health insurance out-of-state for my needed daily medication and kept getting denied (which really started making me angry, since I’m an out-of-state student), it might have helped to remember that, while the experience was difficult, it was a firsthand experience of how injustice becomes implemented in the systems created to help us. From this, I could be grateful for the lessons I learn about systemic injustice and resolutions for it. Right now, ...
When I was asking people about getting health insurance out-of-state for my needed daily medication and kept getting denied (which really started making me angry, since I’m an out-of-state student), it might have helped to remember that, while the experience was difficult, it was a firsthand experience of how injustice becomes implemented in the systems created to help us. From this, I could be grateful for the lessons I learn about systemic injustice and resolutions for it. Right now, I am actually becoming more curious about law so I can know whether a civil suit is possible if this does end up becoming a problem. If nothing else, a bad experience usually has some good knowledge and wisdom to impart.
Remembering the difficulties I have overcome and how they made me stronger, wiser, and more resilient makes me hopeful that the struggles I face now will be overcome as well.
Doing what is right and what my purpose in life is is what matters to me. Whatever might be going on in any given moment, that is the goal I need to remember through it all.
Everytime I get to see my animal friends, I am happy again. Even if it’s a rough patch, I at least tend to have laughter through tears because of them. I always feel grateful when touching them or working with them because they are compassionate, kind, and caring creatures who show their loving essence without fear.
I can live a bigger YES by living each day with spiritual practices and mindfulness of the sacred realities that are continually present with me. This includes things like reducing, reusing, and recycling; examining my own desires and aligning them with the good of all; eating with mindfulness; practicing wu-wei; fulfilling my everyday obligations and doing the best I can at all of them; studying the Torah and putting it into practice; prayer; examining events in my life and discerning my dha...
I can live a bigger YES by living each day with spiritual practices and mindfulness of the sacred realities that are continually present with me. This includes things like reducing, reusing, and recycling; examining my own desires and aligning them with the good of all; eating with mindfulness; practicing wu-wei; fulfilling my everyday obligations and doing the best I can at all of them; studying the Torah and putting it into practice; prayer; examining events in my life and discerning my dharma through those events; studying the history of UFOs and alien mythology; finding opportunities to participate in theater; running; analyzing films and television; living without doing any harm to others; searching for truth and meaning responsibly and freely; and analyzing literature.
Gratitude helps me to see the good in the world by showing me that even the things I see as “bad” can often work out for good. For example, if I hadn’t had a really deep, somewhat traumatic spiritual crisis from 2010-2012, I would not be in seminary right now, nor would I have the deep sense of spirituality that pays attention to wisdom from all cultures and faith traditions that I have now. I can never judge a moment as “bad” when I don’t know what the out...
Gratitude helps me to see the good in the world by showing me that even the things I see as “bad” can often work out for good. For example, if I hadn’t had a really deep, somewhat traumatic spiritual crisis from 2010-2012, I would not be in seminary right now, nor would I have the deep sense of spirituality that pays attention to wisdom from all cultures and faith traditions that I have now. I can never judge a moment as “bad” when I don’t know what the outcome will be.
I was going through a depressive episode and trauma triggers. I could have let it bog me down and have caved in. Instead, however, I went out and went to some museums and national parks to get my mind off of it. Even though I kind of just felt like sitting around all day feeling sad and anxious, I got out, got my mind away from my problems for a while, and ended up having a lot of fun.
If I feel gratitude, it might benefit me and make me feel better about life, but it won’t necessarily help other people. If I express gratitude by saying things like, “Thank you so much!” or “Wow! Look at how beautiful that nest is!” others benefit as well because they know that their own efforts are appreciated and become more aware of things they can be grateful for without anyone nagging them with annoying phrases like, “But think about all the things yo...
If I feel gratitude, it might benefit me and make me feel better about life, but it won’t necessarily help other people. If I express gratitude by saying things like, “Thank you so much!” or “Wow! Look at how beautiful that nest is!” others benefit as well because they know that their own efforts are appreciated and become more aware of things they can be grateful for without anyone nagging them with annoying phrases like, “But think about all the things you have to be grateful for!” Pointing out good things that we all share, however, can encourage others to be grateful.
For my experiential learning in seminary, I am giving my time to help save a man on death row whose execution is likely to be botched because of a medical condition he has. He previously had a stay of execution because of this, but the Supreme Court ruled that he could be executed, despite this risk. I hope that the state of Missouri will give him another stay of execution so that the Eighth Amendment is not violated, and this man’s rights are maintained. If he survives, I will be enric...
For my experiential learning in seminary, I am giving my time to help save a man on death row whose execution is likely to be botched because of a medical condition he has. He previously had a stay of execution because of this, but the Supreme Court ruled that he could be executed, despite this risk. I hope that the state of Missouri will give him another stay of execution so that the Eighth Amendment is not violated, and this man’s rights are maintained. If he survives, I will be enriched by knowing that I did what I could to save his life and save him from torture. #SpareRussell https://www.change.org/p/sparerussell
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