What kind of shoes do you wear?

I am drawn to the Persian proverb that reads, "I cursed the fact that I had no shoes until I saw a man who had no feet." 

How often have you thought negatively about some situation until you began to compare yourself to people who appear worse off?  This is an eye-opening revelation, not only because it reveals your inner judge, but also because it reveals you may be more apt to shift accountability and responsibility away from yourself.  Do you note the implications?

People each have their own perception. You will see differently than other people. To observe is not the same as to judge.  To believe in the power of the human spirit allows you to rise above noticing difference.  Instead, your instinct will evolve to choose to focus on what you have in common or, why you feel connected to people as they are.  

As you evolve to believe each person exists to make a genuine difference in the world, you will come to accept your calling.  When you choose not to run away from your fears, or the experiences that evoke them, you will face all that is genuinely loving and reclaim what it means to relish personal freedom.  Relate the kinds of shoes you happen to wear.

5 Lessons to prompt you to reflect on how you treat people

Ask yourself how you react to the following ideas.  They are five lessons to prompt you to reflect on how you treat people.  Imagine yourself in the shoes of different people in each story.  Would it make sense to change any of your ways?  Its never too late...

1 - First Important Lesson - Cleaning Lady.

During my second month of college, our professor gave us a pop quiz. I was a conscientious student and breezed through questions until I read the last one: "What is the first name of the woman who cleans the school?"

Surely this was some kind of joke. I had seen the cleaning woman several times. She was tall, dark-haired and in her 50s, but how would I know her name?  I handed in my paper, leaving the last question blank. Just before class ended, one student asked if the last question would count toward our quiz grade.

"Absolutely," said the professor. "In your careers, you will meet many people. All are significant. They deserve your attention and care, even if all you do is smile and say "hello."   I've never forgotten that lesson. I also learned her name was Dorothy.

2. - Second Important Lesson - Pickup in the Rain

One night, at 11:30 p.m., an elderly African-American woman was standing on the side of an Alabama highway trying to endure a lashing rainstorm. Her car had  broken down and she desperately needed a ride. Soaking wet, she decided to flag down the next car.

A young white man stopped to help her, generally unheard of in those conflict-filled 60s.. The man took her to safety, helped her get assistance and put her into a taxicab.   She seemed to be in a big hurry, but wrote down his address and thanked him. Seven days went by and a knock came on the man's door. To his surprise, a  giant console color TV was delivered to his home. A special note was attached.  It read:

"Thank you so much for assisting me on the highway the other night. The rain drenched not only my clothes, but also my spirits. Then you came along.  Because of you, I was able to make it to my dying husband's bedside just before he passed away... God bless you for helping me and unselfishly serving others."

Sincerely, Mrs. Nat King Cole.

3 - Third Important Lesson - Always remember those who serve.

In the days when an ice cream sundae cost much less, a 10-year-old boy entered a hotel coffee shop and sat at a table. A waitress put a glass of water in front of him.

"How much is an ice cream sundae?" he asked.

"Fifty cents," replied the waitress.

The little boy pulled is hand out of his pocket and studied the coins in it.

"Well, how much is a plain dish of ice cream?" he inquired.

By now more people waited for a table and the waitress was growing impatient.

"Thirty-five cents," she brusquely replied. The little boy again counted his coins.

"I'll have the plain ice cream," he said. The waitress brought the ice cream, put the bill on the table and walked away. The boy finished the ice cream, paid the cashier and left. When the waitress returned, she began to cry as she wiped the table. There, neatly beside the empty dish, were two nickels and five pennies.  You see, he couldn't have a sundae, because he needed enough to leave her an appropriate tip.

4 - Fourth Important Lesson. - The obstacle in Our Path.

In ancient times, a King had a boulder placed on a roadway. Then he hid himself and watched to see if anyone would remove the huge rock. Some of the king's wealthiest merchants and courtiers came by and simply walked around it. Many loudly blamed the King for not keeping the roads clear, but none did anything about getting the stone out of the way.

Then, a peasant came along carrying a load of vegetables. On approaching the boulder, the peasant laid down his burden and tried to move the stone off the road. After much pushing and straining, he finally succeeded. After he picked up his load of vegetables, he noticed a purse lying in the road where the boulder had been. The purse contained many gold coins and a note from the King indicating that the gold was for the person who removed the boulder from the roadway. The peasant learned what many of us never understand!

Every obstacle presents an opportunity to improve our condition.

5 - Fifth Important Lesson - Giving When it Counts...

Many years ago, when I worked as a volunteer at a hospital, I got to know a little girl named Liz who was suffering from a rare & serious disease. Her only chance of recovery appeared to be a blood transfusion from her 5-year old brother, who had miraculously survived the same disease and had developed the antibodies needed to combat the illness. The doctor explained the situation to her little brother, and asked the boy if he would be willing to give his blood to his sister.

I saw him hesitate for only a moment before taking a deep breath and saying, "Yes I'll do it if it will save her." As the transfusion progressed, he lay in bed next to his sister and smiled, as we all did, seeing the color returning to her cheek. Then his face grew pale and his smile faded.

He looked up at the doctor and asked with a trembling voice, "Will I start to die right away". Being young, the little boy had misunderstood the doctor; he thought he was going to have to give his sister all of his blood in order to save her.

Whimsical Valley by Patrick Drysdale

Once upon a time... there was a town called Whimsical Valley. It was a theatrical place.  Everyone pretended to be different characters. They enjoyed playing roles for fun.

A man on one side of town imagined himself as knight in shining armor. A woman from across town idealized herself as a damsel in distress.  Their roles drew them together.  Others fancied themselves as heavenly messengers on a mission to save the world.

In the beginning, everyone relished playing a certain personality one day and something else the next. But, after a while, their amusement turned into monotonous drudgery. They would repeat the same roles.  By and by, the people of Whimsical Valley had performed their parts for so long that they started believing their starry-eyed roles. They found it harder to remove their disguises.  Eventually, their masks started sticking.

One day, a wise magician was passing through town. He saw people had trouble removing their masks.  So, he went to the local paper and took out an ad for a free demonstration of his Miracle Mask Remover. "No sticky sprays or messy powders," the ad read. "Guaranteed to remove masks with continued application."

Almost everyone in Whimsical Valley saw the ad, but only a few showed up. The magician sensed most had grown so accustomed to their masks that they no longer believed that they wore them. He knew they didn't think his presentation held anything in it for them.

On the night of the exhibition, he passed out free samples of the mask remover and instructions on how to apply it. He urged the attendees to become aware that they were acting from fictitious ideas about themselves.  He explained that they were too identified with the parts they played. "You've worn your masks for so long," he said, "that you don't even know you have them on anymore. But, if you practice these instructions everyday," the magician continued, "your masks will eventually fall off." Then, he vanished.

Some people felt the wise man had a good product but were unconvinced they wore false faces. They took their bottles home and never opened them.  They continued to act out the roles of their masks, all-the-while, believing they were being themselves.  Other people resented the magician suggesting they were someone other than who they thought. They spread rumors in Whimsical Valley that the magician was a fraud.

Yet, some of the people who attended the demonstration tried the mask remover. Most forgot to use it everyday because it was a new activity for them, but when they remembered, they applied the magician’s instructions. It wasn't until their masks started coming loose that they were even able to really believe that they wore them.

One by one, the brave people who practiced the magician's instructions took great delight in rediscovering their authentic features. Each one knew that this was the familiar appearance he used to know and felt nothing but gratitude for the wise man's visit. He had helped them return to what they originally were.

Interested in finding your authentic identity? Here are three simple rules:

1) There's nothing for you to do, only something to understand. It's important to remember your genuine features are mixed in with a lot of acquired identifications of what you think you should be. You are not your physical body, your personality, thoughts, feelings, home, career, bank account or any concepts that you may have about yourself. You are just as different from these things as you are from the clothes you put on in the morning. You may experience bursts of spontaneous singing. In short, your real tastes and personal identity will seem to emerge when you choose to see them.

2) Assume you already know everything there is to know about yourself. There's a lot more comprising your entirety than you realize. Thinking that you presently understand yourself is like gazing at the tip of an iceberg and taking for granted you've seen the whole thing. In actuality, most of what you do and say is determined unconsciously.  Most of our behavior, for example, has been learned by unconsciously imitating others. People are strange. It's as if we have an inborn mechanism that automatically makes us imitate anything we see or hear. Believe it or not, almost everything we do and say is because we've heard somebody else do and say it first.

3) Realize no person or situation stops you from experiencing who you are. Your innate self is something you can enjoy in this life right here on earth. It's a rediscovery of what you essentially are and not a rare occurrence reserved for a privileged few. It's an interior growth into spiritual maturity.  With patience and persistence, you'll start realizing who you are and what you're not. Understand that you don't need to start from anywhere than where you are.  No sincere effort on your part is ever wasted. Begin with the thought that having just a little bit of light leads to more light. It always does.

No one goes to a king and asks for a penny. Try applying this same principle to your inner life.  Boldly request to experience your genuine nature. Just dare a lot and you'll get a lot.

True wisom comes from the mind

A man stood on the edge of a river.  Although it was narrow, the current was strong.  The angry water seemed an image of his mind, throbbing and tossing with the eight material activities.  He decided to let them flow out of his mind into the water.  His mind became calm and his heart content.

Suddenly, he heard a shout for help and in the white foam of the waves he saw a man from the village.  He hated this man because he had sex with his wife, stolen his livestock, and then beaten him at wrestling.  Then another cry for help came to his ears.  In the water, he saw a very holy saint whom he respected greatly.  He had helped him in times of trouble and eased his mind.

Both men were being dragged to the edge of a dangerous waterfall.  He knew they would be drowned.  With great effort, he hurled his hunting rope to the other side.  The noose tightened fast around a rock and he tied the other end to a tree.

Both men caught on to the rope and pulled themselves to safety.  But once on the riverbank they began to fight.  The holy man started screaming, 'I tried to stop you jumping in and you pulled me in with you.  Now look at me! I'm soaking wet'

The other man just laughed hysterically and punched the holy man in the nose.  'You do-gooders are all the same,' he said.  'I never asked you to help me.'

At this, our brave hero became upset and confused, and his body tensed up.  He suddenly realized these men were not real but personifications of the 8 material activities. 

With a yell, he pushed them back into the river.  They plunged over the waterfall down into the seething water.  He sat on the riverbank exhausted, the screaming still echoing in the rocky gorge below.  True wisdom in the mind creates its own freedom.  Or, does it?

Doubt sneaked into his mind like a thief.  He started panicking about pushing the two men back into the waterfall.  What if he was wrong?

-Traditional  Bon story from The Tibetan Art of Living by Christopher Hansard p. 87-88.

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How are you conditioned by 8 material activities?

Do you feel shame, loss, guilt, suffering?  Do you seek achievement, fame, approval and happiness? Energy generated inside is the core of all our perceived troubles.

The people who attain

Imam el-Ghazali relates a tradition from the life of Isa, ibn Maryam.

Isa one day saw some people sitting miserably on a wall, by the roadside.

He asked, "What is your affliction?"

They said, "We have become like this through our fear of hell."

He went on his way, and saw a number of people grouped disconsolately in various postures by the wayside.  He said, "What is your affliction?"

They said, "Desire for Paradise has made us like this."

He went on his way until he came to a third group of people.  They looked like people who had endured much, but their faces shone with joy.

Isa asked them, "What made you like this?"

They answered, "The Spirit of Truth.  We have seen Reality, and this has made us oblivious to lesser goals.

Isa said, "These are the people who attain.  On the Day of Accounting, these are they who will be in the Presence of God."

~Taken from Idries Shah, Tales of Dervishes, p. 181