Enlightened Engagement

We go through our day making a myriad of choices. Often times the choices are minor and have minimal impact on our lives. Do I get up at the first alarm, should I put salt on my salad, or should I take this route or the other are choices we all make daily. Most of the time whether we do one thing or another doesn't change the quality of our lives. Today was different for me. Today I made a choice and it changed me profoundly. Although the choice I made was to take a different bike path I rode I experienced something that made me realize how wonderful and tenuous life is. When I was riding I took a different bike path and came across a man laying on the ground who had crashed his bike. He was breathing erratically and was in obvious distress. His granddaughter was by him crying. I told her he would be OK. We got out a phone and called 911. The man was breathing but just barely. I was thinking that I would have to give CPR, of which I am certified. Another bike rider came along and ...

Terms of Endearment The affections that we have for the ones we love, the people we interact with, and acquaintances we briefly encounter are tempered with conditions. What those conditions entail are governed by the people, our perspective, and the depth of our relationship. What we do in the presence of others is a conditional response to our environment and how we believe. Those terms, in my opinion, should be unconditional love and tolerance. That is not an easy thing to do when given the negativity we are bombarded with in our daily lives. Unconditional love and tolerance is something that only monks and ministers can do. I believe we can all hold out our hand in friendship, open the door for a person behind you, and give of your time and money for worthy causes because we all are part of the whole of humanity. This is the premise for the terms of love that we all can visit upon our family, neighbor, and friend.