sidewalk sentiments

someone in my neighborhood suggested using chalk to make art for people to see when they go on walks. i happen to have a stash of sidewalk chalk and a desire to bring a smile to someone's face, even for a moment.

i thought for a while about how to convey a clear message of lovingkindness and am pleased with the result. it extends from our driveway to the driveway of our corner neighbors. (speaking of whom, i hope to get to know them better somehow. they moved in maybe a month or so ago and i had the chance to meet a couple of the kids. i was excited to learn that there were boys around my own sons' ages, hopeful that we could establish some friendships. the dad owns an indian ice cream factory in the next town over and brought us a box of their creamy frozen treats. we've waved at each other as we get in and out of our houses to go someplace, but i have yet to meet the whole family. now that we all have been voluntarily homebound for over a week, i'm not sure if and when it will happen.)

anyway, i shared it on facebook and know that it had an impact on some people there. it's supposed to rain tomorrow. when the weather clears and is dry, i'll make something new.

practice

"We can actually train ourselves and transform the climate in which we live. We can practice being more loving, more aware, more conscious, or whatever we want. We can practice in retreats or while driving or in the supermarket checkout line. If we practice kindness, then spontaneously we start to experience more and more kindness within us and from the world around us." ~ jack kornfield about right understanding


today's metta/lovingkindness extended to myself and others:

• may we be free from prejudice
• may we be free from fear
• may we feel the connectedness of our shared humanity

metta

"We may never find ourselves in situations of such peril that our lives are endangered; yet anguish and pain are undeniable aspects of our lives. None of us can build walls around our hearts that are invulnerable to being breached by life. Facing the sorrow we meet in this life, we have a choice: Our hearts can close, our minds recoil, our bodies contract, and we can experience the heart that lives in a state of painful refusal. We can also dive deeply within ourselves to nurture the courage, balance, patience, and wisdom that enable us to care." ~from she who hears the cries of the world by christina feldman

today's metta/lovingkindness extended to myself:

• may i open my heart to the suffering of others
• may i find the steadfastness not to abandon anyone in this world
• may i be as compassionate to myself as i am to those around me

homeschool philosophy

this lovely post came across my dash this morning and it was too good not to share.

i can incorporate this into metta/lovingkindness:

may i open my loving and courageous heart to myself
may i open my loving and courageous heart to my children
may we listen to each other with open hearts

also:
may i nourish my child's body and mind with the good food and time spent together that we both enjoy

a day off school - with big brother doing something else - sometimes means a pasta date for me and ander

an excerpt from the post:

"I want to open myself to what is, to see my children for who they are and our homeschool for what it is...I can close the plans and curricula and to-do lists for a little while and observe how they tackle something on their own. And I can do this not once or once a year but regularly, every season, so that our homeschool changes as they change. I also need to remind myself of this when we hit a hard patch. Sometimes, yes, there’s something I can change to make things easier or better, but sometimes, the problem is not mine to fix."

2019 word of intention

metta

meaning

lovingkindness