Compassionate Neglect

"Compassion simply stated is leaving other people alone... You are available to another human being to provide what they need to the extent that they ask."

-- Ram Dass

Attention do-gooders: You maybe doing more harm than good! Every action has so many repercussions -- both positive and negative -- that it is impossible to be aware of them all. Even if we do the best we can, we are undoubtedly creating unforseen results. And yet, we can't just do nothing, can we?

One way to look it is that there are three kinds of business -- my business, your business, and God's business. My attention should be exclusively focused on my business. That is what I'm responsible for; that is what I can do something about.

Keeping my nose out of your business is really a form of faith, trust and compassion. It shows that I have faith in you to do whatever is right for you, that I trust you to figure it out, and I have enough compassion to not get involved and muck it up.

God's business is all that stuff that neither you, I, nor anyone else can control, or even influence, so we might as well leave it alone. Stuff like the weather, and fate, and whether the Cubs will ever win the World Series again.

So, one side of the coin of compassion is loving and trusting you enough to leave you alone. The other side of the coin, though, is being there to help and assist you when asked. And making that willingness known to you ahead of time so that you don't hesitate to call upon me in tough times.

Compassion is being a non-pushy resource person. It's TCB coupled with TLC. I don't try and tell you what to do and how to live, but if there's something that you need and ask for that I can provide, I'll be Johnny on the friggin' spot with it!

And, if you do the same thing, what a wonderful world this would be!

Ill-Minded Persons

"Ask thyself, daily, to how many ill-minded persons thou hast shown a kind disposition."

-- Marcus Antonius

It's easy to be nice to nice people. It's almost impossible not to be kind to grieving widows, cute, cuddly babies, and earnest, young seekers. But what about the mean, nasty, ugly sons-of-bitches out there? What have you done for them lately?

I didn't say you had to take one to lunch. As far as I know it isn't International Take a Son-of-a-Bitch to Lunch Week. But you might, as Marcus suggests, audit your own behavior when it comes to how you treat the mean-spirited, ill-tempered, and hard-hearted amongst us. Obviously, the're the ones who need your love the most!

After all, it's just a matter of degree, isn't it? Who among us hasn't been in a foul, nasty mood at one time or another? And at those times wouldn't it have been great to receive a kind word, a gentle touch, a friendly smile? Of course it would. Even if you wouldn't have appreciated it in the moment, in retrospect it would have meant something.

So, now it's your turn. How would you like to be Saint for a Day? Doesn't sound like much fun? Give it a try, you may be surprised. Make it your mission, just for today, to brighten the day of every miserable bastard and bat chit crazy bitch you encounter. Maybe even shine on the slightly out-of-sorts ones, too. 

Just try it for one day and see what happens. You can surely go back to being a miserable sinner tomorrow -- that option is always open. Or a happy-go-lucky, unconscious, normally neurotic citizen. But today, dig a little deeper, give the ill-minded person a little cheer. You may even find that you also cheer up yourself!