zing!

i could feel it instantly..
when i asked the woman for directions
to the faraway beach..
she placed her hand on my shoulder..
zing!
such a tender caring..to send me on my way..
the great spill of love.. radiating out..
that is the radiance we are worthy of..
giving and receiving..

we choose this..we can choose this ..
over and over again..

all that is exploding on the planet right now..
can we bombard this celestial body with love?
what does that look like; feel like?
a hand on a shoulder, a smile..
trite..yes.. and simple..
the gift of one wee moment of love..

in india, one is warned not to smile at the monkeys;
it is seen as a sign of agggression..
surely we have not come to this..
walking past a fellow humanoid..
daring to offer our toothsome grin..?

it is miraculous, indeed, to move out
from that closed door of reticence ~
to the expanse of placing another before yourself ..
move out from the hidden helpless place ..
with a nod, a wave or a howdy - do..
what unfolds and enfolds
is often full-scale simple love..
whether the love-nod is returned..
no matter..never mind..
one heart has fluttered to the gift..

the 14th dalai lama speaks of training in compassion..
the first ping! of compassion
is actually felt by the compassionate one..
explaining that we are wisely selfish when we
cultivate compassion..we get the first hit..

epictetus taught:
never suppress a generous impulse

i like the sound of that..
it urges me on
when i am under the shell/spell of myself..
~to be generous ~
with whatever i have to offer up in the day..
too often, i curl up and look the other way
missing out on opportunities, no doubt,
for kindness, generosity, love..
i see .. maybe i remembre next time..
come out, come out..
whoever you are...


how could we forget those ancient myths...
the myths of dragons
that at the last moment
are transformed into princesses?
perhaps
all the dragons
in our lives are princesses
who are only waiting
to see us act, just once,
with beauty and courage.
perhaps
everything that frightens us is,
in its deepest essence,
something helpless that wants our love.
~rainer maria rilke

zing!

*NOTE :
sometimes it is far easier to offer
comfort and kindness to a stranger..
shall we tell all the ones we love we love them?
let's!