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Get to know me survey!!! yeeeaaa!!!

Nov10

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This is a little “get to know me better” bloggy survey!

So here, get to know me better! Lol ;-D

1.) Define yourself in eleven words. Playful, compassionate, alive, mindful, positive, trusting, happy, depressed (only sometimes), loving, amused, inspired

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2.) Are you an introvert or an extrovert?
I’m a very shy extrovert! I love my own company but also love to be around people! I’m not the life of the party, I’m the quiet girl waiting for someone to come talk to me but I feel very uplifted and energized and hopeful in a room full of people whether or not I know them, even if no one is talking to me. I may come off as reserved or socially anxious or introverted or a loner but that’s totally not the case! I’m just shy. But I eventually will open up. You’ll be sorry! Lol j/k

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3.) What kind of food won’t you eat?

Cantaloupe, Eww!

4.) Where do you see yourself in 5 years? Ahh, this question! I never much cared for it. Lol I just go with the flow, bask in the beauty of now. I’m not much of a planner, especially not that much into the future!

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5.) If you could trade places with one person for a day, who would you be?
This would probably be interesting but I’m not so sure I would trade places even for only a day. There’s no one I want to be other than me. It would be enlightening though to see the world through someone else’s eyes, to live and breathe as someone else. I may like to trade with multiple people throughout the day to get various perspectives. If I can only choose one, I would probably choose someone very different than me in some way like someone of a different culture or religious view or someone with an unusual experience so in combination with my own views and experiences, I can try to deepen my understanding of the world and others in general.

“She woke up every morning with the option of being anyone she wished. How beautiful it was that she always chose herself.” ~ Tyler Kent White

6.) What is your best quality? List two.
My compassion. I’m not always compassionate but generally I have very deep compassion for all living sentient beings, even those who seem difficult to me. I don’t always feel or act on compassion, I can be cold, an asshole, angry…but for the most part I’m very compassionate. And I try to get better and better.

Also my lighthearted attitude and how easily amused I am! I can be in severe pain, physical or emotional and still find laughter and lightness often. It’s a fantastic way to be. It’s so inspiring. Everything doesn’t have to be so serious.

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7.) What book has changed your life? Why? A book called 3:00am. I wrote about it here before! It’s a fictional murder mystery with the main character being someone with a very rare sleep disorder with no known cure and the book really conveys the message of how each minute, each moment, each breath we take is extremely valuable, important, worth acknowledging and savoring. The man in the book only has one hour each day to be awake so he plans literally every minute individually to get the most in life, he goes for a run, reads his favorite books, goes on the Internet, talks to his dad…and plans each and every minute to live to the fullest before he falls asleep for 23 hours. The story is a reminder that each of us only has these moments right here, right now. We don’t have this disorder but we too only have a limited number of minutes to be awake/alive

I don’t always live like this but after reading that book I am changed and realize and live in such a way more than I used to, so that each minute counts and is the best it can be.

“Let’s cherish every moment we have been given; the time is passing by…” ~ Kool & the Gang

Here are a couple excerpts:

“Those minutes are my life, I nearly scream. Those minutes that you take so much for granted because you get a thousand of them each day are priceless to me. Your life is measured by title, wealth, and status. My life is measured in grains of sand, trickling from one teardrop to the other.
My nostrils flare when I’m angry and I wonder if Ray feels a small gust of wind. Taking a calm breath, I ponder telling her that I’m Henry Bins and I have Henry Bins. I don’t.”

(Henry Bins is the disorder named after this man who was the first in the world to be diagnosed.)

“It’s like Christmas, each minute a beautifully wrapped gift just waiting to be opened. Should I allow myself an extra minute in the shower? Could I read three more pages of my book? Run another quarter mile? Watch a YouTube video? Watch the swimming pool scene from Wild Things, twice?”
Check out my post if you want:

https://inspirationalgem.wordpress.com/2014/10/30/300am/

8.) What is your biggest problem/s in life?
My depressive disorder but it’s not constantly severe or always a problem. It comes & goes. I’m naturally & generally happy & cheerful. But it always comes back to get me. Lol

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9.) Who is your role model?
I don’t have one. There’s really no one I try to be like and live up to. Except the Buddha, Buddha Shakymuni, I try to live up to his ways. I want my love, my compassion, my happiness, my selflessness…to mirror his. I don’t always succeed at it and still have a long way to go probably. I am very mortal, fragile, weak next to him, but it’s so good to try. I practice Buddhist meditation, listen to Buddhist songs, attend classes, have Mala recitation beads, and try to live each day inspired by Buddha and practice his Teachings. Dharma is my inspiration and guide. There’s so much I don’t know but I’m learning more & more about Dharma.

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10.) Do you have any insecurities? What are they? Yes, I have an insecurity that comes and goes, like my depression does, more likely when I’m depressed. I wish i had a lifelong friend, particularly another girl, who is like family/ sister. Sometimes I feel incomplete and less loved without that. I wish I had a few longterm friendships since we were very young.

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11.) What do you believe?
??? Well let’s see, I believe we are all One, One with each other, the whole uni-verse, nature, the stars and moon & sun, animals….I often feel very connected to others and the world around me. I always have since I was a little girl but never knew how to put it into words. I am all for universal love, wishing everyone the best, wanting everyone to be happy and well, not at the expense of others though. When one person wins, we all win. When one person or animal dies, a light goes out on all of us. Your suffering is my suffering, your happiness is mine. Even if someone gets the job I want, I can be happy for that person. If someone has what I desperately want and do not have, I can still be happy and congratulate the person. If it’s difficult at first, I can tune into my wisdom of Oneness.
I don’t always feel this way even though I believe it. Sometimes I’m depressed and do not feel connected to anyone or anything. Sometimes I’m lonely or jealous or uninspired. But I always find my way back.

12.) Does blogging enrich or better your life? Yes! Both the people I meet/communicate with and my own writing. I write for others and myself. I know every post may not be read by someone or “liked” or liked but it’s still worth it to write and share. It will always be here for anyone who may find it and for me. I don’t always publish everyday but I do write for the blog every single day. I am inspired almost everyday, some days the whole day, some days only one moment but each day I find something to inspire me or just feel inspired. I am inspired by what I read, see, feel…..and love to share and uplift or inspire others as well. Writing for here helps me think more clearly and in a more deep way. Sometimes my own writing inspires me! I have a whole collection since 2012 to look back on whenever I want. Once in a while WordPress suggests an old post to read after I publish a new one and I check it out and it’s years old and still so inspiring! It’s especially helpful when I’m depressed or in severe physical pain with a headache and I look back on an old post of mine and know I felt that way and can feel that way again. Other people’s positive thoughts and writing can be so uplifting, inspiring,and helpful but there’s a certain kind of hope and inspiration knowing I felt that way myself once and have it in me to feel that way again. My cover photo on Facebook says “Life is beautiful.” I don’t always feel that way. Often but not always. And when I’m depressed/suicidal or having an agonizing headache, when I see that, I am reminded that I once felt that life is beautiful and can feel that again. Can feel that way NOW! Or soon.

Most of the stuff I post here is timeless and can apply to anyone. I share my own experiences but try to in a way so anyone at all can relate. Not everyone has depression or headaches but when I write of my experiences with those, I try to make it so anyone can take any problem no matter how minor or serious, and relate. Most of us have basic empathy to relate to one another and we can deepen it.

I feel that writing for here also strengthens my positive attitude in general. It reinforces it, maintains it. I would be positive anyway mostly, but this deepens it and helps me be positive in moments I may not be without it.
It helps to strengthen my habit of looking on the brighter side of life. I write here of my struggles and my positive way of handling them. Sometimes I don’t feel like handling them positively but I am reminded of what I share here frequently and often get inspired to be more positive. It’s like a reminder to myself while also potentially helping or reminding others. And I love when I get comments, likes, and shares. ❤

Since I make this mostly a positive place but also genuine, I do admit my flaws and less than pleasant qualities and situations but I highlight my strengths and good qualities and it carries over into life off of the blog. I remember to admit my weaknesses but also appreciate my strengths and blessings more.

13.) What kind of music do you like to listen to?
I love all kinds but especially Oldies, country, and inspirational! I love love songs and ones with deep meaning and positive messages. I also like angry death metal! Lol! They never get old!

14.) four facts about yourself:

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1.) green & pink are two of my favorite colors
2.) if I were to die I would love if my organs can go to someone in need “Don’t take your organs to Heaven, Heaven knows we need them here!”
In fact, I would love to give one of my kidneys to anyone in need even when I’m alive. I heard the transplant is more likely to be a success with a living donor. Want my kidney? You can have it if you desperately need it to live(I’m not going to sell it to people trying to get money or something…)!! Just let me know. (if I’m allowed to give it, I heard living donors who want to give a kidney to a random stranger must endure some grueling hours of psychiatric evaluation. And I have severe, severe depression off & on but I’m not trying to die, I know what I’m in for! But the doctors may think I’m not thinking clearly because of my history of suicidal depression. But I can assure them I am! I just want to help! It is not without risks and won’t be always easy, but it’s worth it and the medical people make it as safe as possible. I want someone to live. I have two perfect, beautiful kidneys, I only need one!! I have no money so hopefully it doesn’t cost anything on my part! Lol) I don’t want anything in return other than someone living.
Since I was a young girl I have been deeply touched and inspired by the idea of organ donation even though I have never been personally touched by it.
I always had a strong desire to help.
I have known for as long as I can remember that I want my organs to go to someone else when I no longer need them. The only reason is that I want someone else to live. There are so many waiting for an organ and there are many organs that would save people’s lives but the person does not consent to donation. Every single eligible person can help.
I don’t care who they go to. People have asked me, “But what if your heart goes to a ‘nasty,’ ‘undeserving,’ ‘no good,’ …..or whatever other unpleasant adjective….person?!” First of all, most people are not nasty or no good. So that is unlikely. Also it’s better to take the chance of saving an “unworthy” person than not and a “good” person dies. But anyway, everyone deserves to live!

But I don’t judge those who refuse to donate their organs before or after death even though I wish everyone would after death! I understand and it’s your choice. Organ donation is a beautiful gift and it’s amazing how doctors can perform transplants! What a gift! To have parts of someone else to keep us alive! To give parts of our self to keep someone else alive! Incredible beauty!
Thank you doctors, nurses, technicians….& organ donors/families & beautiful people!! <333 ❤ Thank You, thank you!! So many people are alive NOW because of the love of organ donors and their families and the love and hard work of the medical professionals involved.

3.) I’m reading a beautiful novel, that I just found accidentally, about a heart transplant and the pain & beauty of the families involved, how one young woman lives because another young woman died, the guilt and gratitude she experiences and the resentment the dead woman’s husband has for the family who received the heart. It’s called “Irreplaceable” and conveys so many mixed emotions both painful and beautiful that all involved experience.
4.) I have hipbone length hair and don’t ever want it any shorter.

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15.) What eleven words do NOT typically describe you?
Motivated (I’m a lazy bum), organized (I’m a slob & a wreck), greedy (obviously! See above, I’m ready to give you my kidney!), athletic(sports bore me…and I’m lazy!), aloof(i love being close to others both physically and emotionally – I love hugs!), stressed(I’m often calm and handle things well and work well under pressure), dramatic (I’m quiet and balanced – usually), loud (I have a tendency to scream when people walk in my room {it could be an axe murderer for all I know!} but other than that you won’t even know I’m here!), tenacious (the description for zodiac sign for me, insists that I am/should be stubborn but I’m quite the opposite!, I am extremely easy-going, trusting, and have even been called a “push-over” on occasion!), sensitive (in the sense that I’m not easy to offended or hurt emotionally, I can handle constructive, jokes, sarcasm…), moralist/sanctimonious (I don’t like acting like I always know what is right or acting like I live better than anyone else)

Is that eleven? I sort of lost count! 😉

I hope your day is going amazingly!!

And hopefully you got to know me/know me a bit better?!

If you want, take the survey and let me know! I would just love to see your answers! One of my favorite things to read is “about me” pages & random facts about people. It’s so fun seeing little glimpses of who someone is. ❤

Hugs & love to you, always!

😀

Xoxo Kim

Waves of Love <3

Nov9

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“Send waves of love to the world, where people are fighting. The world needs your love.”

This is a beautiful concept! Sometimes when there’s arguing and negativity, we may be tempted to join in and meet the bitterness with more bitterness. Sometimes I’m guilty of this myself. One example is when my mom or sister do something I don’t like and instead of letting it slide or be loving, I say something unkind or accept an invitation to a trivial argument. Another example is writing a rude message back to someone who writes one to me, I usually do not do this but have before. I hope to get better and better with this. We don’t need more negativity, rudeness, and anger in the face of unkindness & negativity, we need more love & patience. Each encounter with someone who is being difficult is an opportunity to develop the virtue of patience & practice universal love. ❤ ❤

It's not always easy but definitely worth it!

Waves of love can be in the form of acts of kindness, genuine well wishes, sweet words, just avoiding insults and toxic words or actions when we are tempted, hugs, positive posts on social media, planting flowers…so many things!! 😀

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Hugs & Love,

xoxo Kim

I Choose Kindness <3

Nov1

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“No act of kindness no matter how small is ever wasted.” ~ Aesop

Today Positive Focus has declared “I Choose Kindness Day.” We are encouraged to perform at least one act of kindness today. It’s good to do this every single day but it’s ok to have a whole day specifically designated for Kindness. Just like Valentine’s day & Mother’s Day, and birthdays! It’s good to love our mom every day, celebrate all kinds of love every day, celebrate and cherish a person’s or animal’s life every day in various ways but there’s nothing wrong with having a day dedicated to it. We won’t be celebrating with cakes and roses and extravagant restaurants and material gifts every single day so we can reserve one day for that and celebrate in more subtle but still important ways every other day of the year. 

Carol CC Miller, the founder of Positive Focus, is giving out free hugs today!

Here are a list of some suggestions for Kindness Day. We don’t have to go all out and do something “big” like volunteer at a soup kitchen or something (although that would be fantastic!)! The point is to incorporate kindness into our every day situations.

1.) Smile at a stranger. 

2.) help your mom in the kitchen 

3.) give money to a homeless person (many people say not to because they use it for alcohol but think about it for a second. They also have to be buying food. They can’t live on just alcohol! Maybe they are buying alcohol but then they still need money for food! And not all of them are into alcohol or other drugs. People say give them food instead but just because they are homeless doesn’t mean they want food off of a stranger. I don’t want to encourage people to eat something they don’t know where it was or who did what to it. Would you eat food some random stranger comes up and gives you? I know people say “beggars can’t be choosy” but the line has to be drawn somewhere…they still have choices to make.)

4.) give a tip to a person in a cafe or restaurant 

5.) put an insect outside instead of killing 

6.) write a sweet message on social media 

7.) give someone a genuine compliment 

8.) write an inspiring quote on an index card and put it in a public place to be found 

9.) feed a stray animal or squirrels and pigeons in a safe place 

10.) pick trash up off the ground 

11.) pick objects up off the floor in a store and put them back on the shelves

12.) pay for someone’s coffee or something in line 

13.) ask someone “how are you today?” not just as a social obligation or thing to do but to really listen and care

14.) instead of lashing out, take a deep breath and hold our tongue when someone provokes us to be angry. Kindness can be acted on in the most subtle or none noticeable ways like not doing something unkind that we are so tempted to do. It won’t stand out most likely, most won’t be conscious of our act of kindness but it doesn’t matter, we aren’t trying to get credit. And even though they won’t realize, they would realize if our act wasn’t done and feel the unpleasant effects. 

15.) give someone a hug (if we know the person likes or doesn’t mind being hugged!)

16.) Sincerely wish the best for someone even if the person doesn’t know it, this generates positive energy and gets us more in the habit of loving and positive thinking.

17.) put a dollar on a park bench or let it blow away in the wind. Maybe a person in need will find it. At first it probably feels like wasting money but it’s really not, think how happy you would feel finding one dollar and know someone else will feel that way too

18.) let someone in front of us in line in a store

19.) forgive someone for being rude, smile at a person who carelessly pushes by you on a crowded street or bus, let someone go before us in traffic…..

20.) Share an inspiring post on social media – social media is a great way to show love or potentially show love to thousands of strangers each day or even just one, it gives us the opportunity to reach people we never would without it. It’s truly an incredible invention that we so often take for granted or use for negative purposes like arguing and getting offended and trying to offend people or “stalking” people we don’t like just to see what they’re up to or wasting hours on boring mindless junk because we don’t want to think of something better. But one positive post will still be here in years to come and even if no one sees it now, in future years or days, someone can stumble upon it. 

I’m not telling people what to do or what anyone “should” do! These are just some ideas to make the day a bit sweeter for others. I don’t think anyone “should” do these things and I don’t always do all these things myself! I won’t be doing all of them today. It’s just good to do sweet little things once in a while to bring some more light into the world. But you are enough just how you are and we don’t have to be heroes or saints or constantly doing things for everyone to be good or worthy or kindhearted.

Here is a beautiful song by Nimo Patel:

“Throw your hearts up
Let it fly high
Let your love for all the world
Spread through the skies
Let it drop down
Let it all go
Spreading kindness to every
Single living soul 
Can you see your love… for me shining through
Cuz what you see in me, I can see in you
And soon enough, you and me…we’ll be outta time
And kindness… will be all we can leave behind”

Being Kind – mobile

Being Kind – desktop

Love is how we live on long after we are gone. Our loving essence lives forever. Let it ripple and touch others. Live & love.

Live to love.
Love to live. ❤

Do you have any ideas for acts of kindness? Post them here in the comments or maybe just try them out! ❤ There is an infinite number of ways to show kindness in this life. 

“Blessed are those who can give without remembering and receive without forgetting.”

I hope you are having a lovely day! Much love to you!! ❤ 😀 ~Hugs~

Xoxo Kim 

Smile <3

Oct25

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(my shirt says “Wild love” <3)

On Friday afternoon, we had an order delivered at the store where I work.

The man delivering the heavy packages was bringing it in the store and a kind young man walking up the street stopped to help him. I was just so happy to see them. As soon as they walked in I couldn’t help but smile brightly and the delivery man playfully said “ahhh, I just seen her smile did you see it?!” and said something funny about the Ninja Turtle pops we sell. I couldn’t help but smile again.

I paid him for the order and looked over the receipts and as he was leaving he said goodbye and thank you for smiling! And he said it with such deep gratitude in his voice.

I love when people smile and I make it my goal to look and smile at people each day walking up the streets. My smile and desire to smile come naturally but I’m real shy in person so I often automatically, shyly, look away when a stranger is right in front of me on the streets. If I’m already talking to a person I’m not too shy to smile and make eye contact. 

But I just have the urge to smile and look directly at every person I see and I’m much better with it than I used to be but I’m still working on it!

I know how it brightens my day when someone smiles at me and I want to do that for others.

I don’t have to remember to or force a smile; that comes automatically and very easily. I just have to force myself to allow it and not look away when a stranger is right before me.

Some people are very receptive of my greeting and greet me back in a similar way, others look confused like “Do I know this girl, why is she so friendly, I don’t even know her?!” lol I don’t mind any of the reactions. Most people (at least where I live) do not seem to greet strangers whether it’s a friendly hello or warm smile or eye contact on the street. Not that they aren’t friendly. We just aren’t usually brought up to greet each other that way. But it’s in me naturally to be that way and lights my world when someone says hello to me, smiles, or just makes eye contact. 

We never know how much we help someone with just a simple gesture or positive energy. Not everyone can see. I know a blind lady and when I see her I say hello and smile. She can hear my smile even though she can’t see it. ❤ One day she told me on Mother's Day to tell my mom she has a beautiful daughter and to tell her she said thank you for bringing me to the world! Isn't that so sweet?! The lady has very long, beautiful hair like me and an adult son a few years younger than me. He always says hello to me when I see him.

There's a universal love song I love about how one person probably can't change the whole world but each one of us can change the world for ONE. And that ONE is worth it and in some way, enough.

Each & every day, we have opportunities to change the world or brighten the world for someone. Sometimes the opportunities just come to us but other days if we look, we can see them. It can be as simple as smiling at someone! 😀 Or truly listening to someone talk, encouraging a person, a hug. There are so many ways to show love. 

Here are some lyrics to the beautiful song.

“Well, I can’t change the world
But I can live with open hands
And I can’t change the world
But I can give all that I can
And I can pray and I can love
And when all is said and done
I can’t change the world
But I can change the world for one”

Compassion – Andrew Witt – mobile

Compassion – desktop

Much love to you!

& remember a beautiful smile is always in style. 😀 ❤

xoxo Kim ❤

Look to each other for love <3

Sep30

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Here is a song sung by Bill Withers I love! It’s about loving each other and looking on the bright side of life! Money and other material things, competitions, success with jobs and things can bring us a certain kind of happiness but true boundless happiness is discovered through love, not just romantic love, but love as a state of being, love for others, love for life itself. All those other things can complement our happiness and joy and add to it but without love, it’s likely we would still feel empty and not very happy, no matter what else we have. Love doesn’t just have to be for a specific person or thing but also just a way of life. 

“Let’s look to each other for love
Look on the brighter side of life
And the world that we share
Can make us happy
Look to one another for love
Look on the lighter side of life
And the way that we are
Can make us happy”

Check out the song!

Look to Each Other for Love – desktop

Look to Each Other for Love – mobile

Lots n Lots of love to you!

😀

❤

xoxo Kim ❤

Protector Day – Avalokiteshvara

Sep29

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Look who arrived in the mail today! And today also happens to be Protector Day!! ❤

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This is Avalokiteshvara. He is the embodiment of love & compassion for all living sentient beings. He is one of the most celebrated of the bodhisattvas. According to the story, he chooses not to enter the blissful state of Nirvana, so he can remain here with us on Earth and save everyone in need. He is devoted to the salvation of others and this displays his fierce compassion and the depth of his love. 

His mantra is Om mani padme hum, which is said to contain all the teachings of the Buddha. 
Saying this out loud or silently is supposed to invoke the powerful, benevolent attention of Avalokiteshvara.

I love this man who is symbolic of love & compassion for all. His compassion is so complete that nothing can break him and he can handle anything. He is a great reminder to all of us, Buddhist or not, to strengthen our compassion for others. Not just humans but anything that can feel and has interests. 

Imagine having compassion so complete, so deep, so full that nothing can seriously disturb us. 

Here is to Avalokiteshvara out of the booklet.
Praise to Avalokiteshvara:

“You whose white coloured body
Is unstained by faults,
Whose crown is adorned with 
A fully enlightened Buddha,
Who gaze upon migrators
With eyes of compassion,
To you Arya Avalokiteshvara
I prostrate.” (out of the prayer booklet)

We can offer him beautiful things such as flowers, candles, sweet fragrant things, tea, the sun & the moon….not that he needs these but it shows our devotion to universal compassion and gets our own minds in the habit of love. 

Here is the prayer booklet info.:

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You don’t have to believe in someone who actually hears prayers for this to be helpful. As I said, it gets our minds in the habit of acting and thinking purely and lovingly.

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These two are photos out of the booklet.

Here is the visualization:

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And here is a beautiful song with the mantra said throughout:

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Om mani padme hum – mobile

Om mani padme hum – desktop

It’s a great song to meditate to! And play in the background of whatever we’re doing. It’s over 23 minutes long and I listen to it very frequently. It’s soothing and inspiring. I’m listening to it right now! 

Here is my necklace with him on it.

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His four arms! It’s just adorable! 

I love when they have multiple arms! 

And here is my Mala, for the mantra om mani padme hum.

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Isn’t it beautiful?! 

It’s believed by Buddhists that just seeing this mantra or hearing it has very powerful effects and just seeing a Buddha statue or picture is as good as seeing the real thing!  

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I just love how he came to me today on Protector Day!! How sweet!!! I ordered him a few days ago! 

Happy Protector Day!! I think this day is a fantastic reminder to use our power to help others. Most of us have power over someone and are in a “lower” position than someone else. Let’s use our power and advantages for good. To help, uplift, inspire, heal, hug, and love. Let’s lift people up, not drag them down. Lift each other in love. ❤ ❤

😀

Lots of love to you!

xoxo Kim

Universal Love & World Peace <3

Sep25

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Only Love Can Bring World Peace – mobile

Only Love Can Bring World Peace – desktop

Geshe Kelsang Gyatso, a Buddhist monk and meditation master, in this video above, speaks of Universal Love and the nonsense of war and nuclear weapons. 

He explains how the only way to put an end to war & violence around the world is the practice 
of Dharma, which is Buddha’s teachings, but he also explains that by Dharma, he just means love, patience, and respect of others. Buddha’s teachings are grounded in love. He mentions that he doesn’t preach this because he’s a Buddhist, although that he is. This message is not exclusive to Buddhism and not something to only be carried out by Buddhists.

Anyone irrespective of religious views can share and live this message. 

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Here, Geshe-la explains that LOVE is the most powerful nuclear explosive. It can destroy enemies. Now, at first this may seem horrific as if we want to blow up our enemies! But when he says destroy “enemies,” he is not referring to persons or any living sentient being, he is referring to the concept of enemy. Let’s destroy the concept of someone being our enemy. This doesn’t mean destroying someone who is flesh & blood.

Even if other people consider us their enemy, we do not have to return those thoughts and feelings against them. 

I can be someone’s enemy without that person being mine. 

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If we all think this way, there will be no more enemies in the world. Even if just some of us think this way, there will be more love in the world and less violence and hostility. Even if it’s just one small part of the world, that is incredible! We are made of energy and our energy goes out into the world around us, let’s make it loving energy. Let’s summon all the love we can and destroy the whole notion of enemy.

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Oh, my! My heart just wells up with love and gratitude for this adorable little man & his beautiful message. ❤

It's ok to love our country and our culture but we are not better than anyone else, we are all equal, all one. Some countries have more advanced governments and more human rights applied and cleaner water and more food available but their citizens are no more deserving than the citizens of any other country. 

Borders and boundaries and governments and organization are all “man-made,” even though in some cases they may be necessary. We don't have to use them or the concept of them as a weapon against each other.  Even if we don’t do anything practical to help people in other parts of the world, like travel or donate money, just deepening our compassion and empathy is good. It emits positive energy into our world and inspires us to act more lovingly in general.

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(this isn’t my picture, I don’t know the source)

Let's not just think of our own community members as our brothers and sisters and not just think of our selves as citizens of our own country but citizens of the whole world. That's what each of us are.

Let's forget the enemy. Not forget our enemies as the people they are but forget their role as enemy to us.

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❤ ❤

All of these pictures of Venerable Kelsang are screen captures I took of parts of the video above.

And here is a lovely song about universal love:

What the World Needs Now – Dionne Warwick – mobile

What the World Needs Now – desktop

Love sweet love. ❤

“No not just for some but for everyone.” ❤

An Oldie and goodie! ❤

😀

We may not always live up to this even if we think it's a sweet message. Sometimes we may act selfishly, argue negatively, act in an unkind manner. But we can acknowledge this and try to be better and better. It's ok to fall as long as we keep getting back up. ❤

😀

Much love to you,

xoxo Kim ❤

I Am your Mirror

Sep22

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“We are pain and what cures pain, both. We are the sweet cold water and the jar that pours. I want to hold you close like a lute, so that we can cry out with loving. Would you rather throw stones at a mirror? I am your mirror and here are the stones.” ~ Attributed to Mevlana Rumi 

What a beautiful quote! I think it conveys a message that we have the potential to do, be various things, even opposites. We can be positive or negative, loving or selfish, warm and caring or cold and distant. We are the source of our own problems but we are also the source of the solution to those problems. We have gifts and the ability to share those gifts.

I feel that it’s a quote about interconnectedness and Oneness. Underneath, we all share a basic sentience or experience. We all have very similar qualities and not just humans but animals and insects as well. All sentient beings have needs and desires, interests, are capable of pleasure and pain, joy, and suffering. What we see in our own self, if we look closely, we can see it in others. And what we see in others, we can find in our own self when we look deep within. 

The end of the quote about the mirror seems to indicate that we are very similar and maybe how our actions even against our self can affect others or our actions against others can affect our own self. It also seems like someone offering to take on someone else’s pain. That is beautiful selflessness! Don’t hurt yourself, hurt me if you must hurt someone!

I love the quote and what it seems to mean and there are probably so many, many interpretations we can come up with. I think it just flows beautifully even without thinking about the meaning.

It also reminds me of this:

“Remember that everyone you meet is afraid of something, loves something, and has lost something.”

Again, a message that conveys that underneath, deep within, we are very similar, we are one. Never feel alone, whatever you feel, pleasant or unpleasant, joyous or painful, someone somewhere is experiencing something or has experienced something quite like it. This can deepen our empathy & compassion. Let’s remember how it feels to be happy, accomplish something, have something pleasant happen to us and be happy for others just as we would for our own self. And let’s recall how it feels to be in pain, scared, anxious, to be filled with sorrow and want to help heal & uplift others as much or even more than we want our own pain soothed. Let’s remember how it feels and refuse to inflict that upon someone else. But let’s show compassion & deep understanding to those who attempt to inflict pain upon us.

“…Would you rather throw stones at a mirror? I am your mirror and here are the stones.”

xoxo Kim ❤ 

A Varied Source

Jul12

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“For sentient beings, poor and destitute, May I become a treasure ever plentiful, And lie before them closely in their reach, A varied source of all that they might need.” ~ Shantideva 

This is an amazing concept. To be “a varied source” of all that someone, anyone may need. Be a source of happiness and riches, not just material, monetary riches but rich in love and joy, generous and comforting to anyone in need. Be a source of inspiration, a source of light, be a friend and a protector, give a helping hand, a warm hug.  

There’s a blog called “Waking up with Ryan” by a man who loves to help and inspire people! Just my kind of man!

http://www.wakingupwithryan.com/

(and he’s cute too! Go check him out! ;-D)

Ryan’s everyday morning e-mails, which are about positivity, love, and inspiration, resonate with me so often. His messages each day can apply to people in general. And so often when I’m thinking about a certain topic or concept or something, his e-mail seems to be about that very issue! 

He asks:

“How do you show up for the people all around you?”

This is a fantastic question, one that is of great importance and is good to ask ourselves each day. 

The possibilities are infinite. There’s so much we can do for others whether or not the people realize we are doing anything to help them. Simple things they may not realize we did but would notice if it wasn’t done. Like doing extra work so our coworker doesn’t have to. Moving stuff out of the way if we see it in a street or the middle of a pavement where someone can trip over it or cars can crash. Feeding pigeons on a pavement. Sharing our snacks with a squirrel. Showing love to a homeless person. Even if it’s just eye contact or a sweet smile to show that person’s existence is something, is important, is valued. Saving insects when we can instead of crushing them. We too often overlook certain kinds of people and other sentient beings. Texting our mom just to say hello. Buying our friend coffee or tea. Putting things on hold to help someone else. Creating a blog/e-mail subscription system to send out inspiring messages to millions of people or just one who may see it, write positive messages to people on social media whether we know them or not, compliment a stranger, share an uplifting quote or song, let someone else have the last available seat on a bus or in a waiting room, or the last product in a store even if we need it, warmly reach out to an acquaintance who seems to be struggling even if just to say hello, when we feel like being judgmental instead of acting on that, seek to understand…

Ryan writes(in his June 23rd subscription e-mail):

“It’s too easy to lose ourselves in the day’s activities. We forget to consider the impact we have on each other.

Let’s slow down today and consider that every single interaction is an opportunity to add a little more hope to someone’s life.”

Isn’t this beautiful?

This is so profound. Think about it. Imagine if our every interaction each day, every mundane encounter, every random encounter, every planned encounter, at home, at work, out and about, driving, on a bus or train or plane, with other sentient beings is grasped as an opportunity to bring hope, love, light, and inspiration to that living being. 

Imagine if we all make the choice every single day throughout the day to lavish love onto each other and the world in every way we can. The world would change dramatically. And even if just one of us does this and the rest of the world doesn’t, the world around us will be better for those we touch. Not everyone will be interested in receiving our love and the love we send out to the world won’t always be returned to us but that’s ok! It’s not about what we get but what we give. 

Truly listen when someone wants to talk, listen to understand, not merely to respond in a mechanical, automatic way just to converse or satisfy social expectations, hold our tongue when we feel like lashing out in anger, encourage when someone needs inspiration, hug the hurt, comfort the sick, befriend the lonely, smile at those who are frowning, love the lost, guide them with your love and light, show compassion to those who seem to be lacking it, help the broken heal, be a varied source of all someone may need. 

We won’t always be able to be what everyone wants and needs and that’s ok. Maybe someone needs money you just don’t have to give, maybe someone wants to hear words you can’t bring yourself to say, needs your time when you really have somewhere else to be and can’t give it right then…

We can’t always be everything to everyone. But as long as our intentions are good, our heart is pure, our energy is loving….it’s all that matters. What we have to give, we can give. Let it be enough for now. And it’s a beautiful way to live. 

This quote attributed to Shantideva, inspires me so deeply. To be the best me I can be for whoever needs me. I won’t always succeed but I can do my best in general. 

I hope you have a varied source of all that you need but more importantly, I hope you will be that varied source to others in need. ❤

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I hope you are having a beautiful night or day wherever in the world you are. I’m sending my loving energy to you and wishing you the best. ❤ ❤ ❤ 😀

Ordinary Angels – mobile link to song

Ordinary Angels – desktop link

Xoxo Kim ❤