Cultivating Everyday Compassion Pema Chodron

“These days, many of us feel anxiety and gloom when we look around or read the news. This is natural and understandable, but at the same time it’s important to find ways to cultivate optimism. As it says in an aspiration that I recite often, “in relating to the future of humanity, I will be optimistic and courageous.” Without having some sense of optimism, it’s easy to fall into some passive or defeatist attitude. Why try to do anything to improve the future if it’s hopeless anyway? But according to the teachings on karma, the future is unwritten. What we do now does matter, not just to ourselves but to everyone who is part of this interconnection that we call Mother Earth. Even smiling at someone once can have tremendous ripple effect that goes out and out- who knows how far? If this is the case, then think of how much we can affect the world by enthusiastically training in opening our hearts and minds, day after day.”
From Pema’s book “Welcoming the Unwelcome” pg. 144
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