08/02/2018

Good Morning.

Every day, the news brings us stories of ordinary people who have found themselves in extraordinary and often tragic circumstances. One of the reasons I find these stories compelling is that they challenge me to put myself in that person’s shoes. “How would I have responded? What would it feel like? What effect would it have on my life?” And of course we can never really know.

The Buddhist teacher Pema Chodren tells a moving story of meeting someone who had been in an air crash. Understandably, the young woman’s instinct was to get out of the plane as quickly as possible. She was in such a panic that she didn’t stop to help a little boy who was tangled up in his seat belt. Afterwards, full of remorse and regret at the way she’d behaved, she sank into a three-year depression. However in the longer term it motivated her to start working with people in crisis. She used the experience to open her heart to others and become a more compassionate and courageous person.

I’ve never been in an air crash, but there are plenty of occasions when I’ve not behaved as well as I’d wished. It happens on a daily basis. What I’m gradually learning is that the most important thing is what I choose to do with these experiences. Do I sink into blame and self-judgment? “Typical, you’ve fallen short again!” Or do I treat myself with sympathy and kindness, welcoming whatever insight I’ve been given, and gently motivating myself to behave in a different way? Let’s pray that we can all use difficult experiences to increase our compassion for ourselves and for others.