Thursday, March 01, 2012

Compassion, joy, and thanking God

The death of Andrew Breitbart this morning at age 43 reminds us how precious our time here on Earth really is. We have lost a fighter for truth, who made significant contributions for the betterment of our lives.

I ask myself, what have I learned about living? Three things: One, the action I most enjoy is compassion. Two, the emotion I most enjoy is joy. I give Dr. Jill Bolte Taylor credit for teaching me how to go to my right hemisphere of my brain to learn to practice those actions and emotions. Her book My Stroke of Insight, therefore, has been the most important book I have read in recent years. A blog called A Holy Experience, written by Ann Voskamp, has taught me the importance of the third principle: being thankful to God for every blessing in my life, and expressing that thankfulness all day long every day. When I give myself my needed rest every day, and not waste my time going down other dead-end roads, these three things become easier and easier to experience and express.

Update: Wouldn't you know it? After writing this yesterday morning, I went out and had a very difficult day: car problems, handling difficult people, left brain running negative loops over and over! I had to laugh, but could barely do it. Living with compassion and joy and thankfulness is a choice; or, rather, many choices made all day long. I hope I do better today!

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