Practicing Kindness

Being kind is the secret to being happy and healthy. Would you know why?

Photo by Matt Collamer on Unsplash

That morning, like most others, the train was packed. A lot of impatient people complaining about everything and everyone made the atmosphere not only stuffy, but also unbreathable.

It was when, with great difficulty, an elderly woman entered the vehicle and leaned on the seats as she could. The predictable happened as an elderly person enters crowded public transit: most of those seated sleep as quickly as possible.

However, a six-year-old boy, nudged his father for permission to leave the place where he was. The father, indifferent, told him to stay seated. But the boy, aloud, invited her to come and sit in his place.

An awkward silence ensued in the collective, while the lady, gratefully, took the seat offered to her.

Kindness and Happiness

We have observed that, in the midst of countless possibilities of choice, those who opt for cooperation and ethics build healthier and more lasting relationships.

Being kindness a form of love, studies have shown that kind people increase their happiness because this virtue is linked to the gene that releases the hormone responsible for well-being, dopamine.

A popular saying says that kindness breeds kindness.

Kindness turns out to be contagious too, motivating others to be equally kind. When we are kind to others, we contribute to making the environment in which we live better.

Kindness is also a form of attention, respect and love. Kind people show courtesy, are polite and attentive making their relationships more human and irradiating those feelings to those around them.

Kindness and Health

Another benefit of being kind is that due to our pre-disposition to help others, we are likely to improve our mental health. Our immune system tends to be better, because there is a direct relationship between well-being, happiness and health.

In other words, when we are kind we help and care for others and for ourselves.

Putting ourselves in the other's place is always the best way to act. By being attentive to the needs of other, we conquer the awareness that what makes us happy and make others happy too.

Final Thoughts

Let us be kind giving our best to others and we will see how more complete and happy we'll be.

As kindness stems from the awakening of conscience, when we are willing to develop this virtue we also gain joy, lovingness, affability, friendship, tenderness, gratitude, respect, tenderness and tolerance.

The gesture of kindness is undoubtedly a big step towards changing a situation of neglect, indelicity or indifference this world so much needs.

Think about it!

Adapted from Momento Espírita, originally published on October 07, 2017.

See Also

• The Power of Love
• Weighted observation
• The most important bridge
• Bridge of Life
• A Thinking Power
• Divine Poem

Purity

Purity is not an untangible virtue as most think, but something that can be achieved with effort, patience and dedication. Would you like to learn how?

Photo by Johnny McClung on Unsplash

Purity is a virtue that is very difficult to understand.

According to the dictionary, pure is that which is clean, untouched, without spots or blemishes. In that sense, purity would be the state of someone who has never been touched by evil, in any of its forms.

Purity would have to be preserved from the beginning, as any stain would imply its loss.

In human terms, everyone would be born pure and remain so until they commit the first fault. In such a sense, the state of purity would be forever lost and beyond the reach of the vast majority of men.

However, Jesus affirmed the bliss of the pure in heart.

It is not possible that the happiness of the blessed is restricted to a tiny minority, for Christ also said that none of his sheep would be lost. Thus, the meaning of the word purity cannot be restricted to the condition of someone who has never been touched by evil.

Perfect Purity

Purity is not something you are born with or something that can be lost at the slightest slip. It is a state of consciousness to be built over time.

Being pure is not being ignorant of the reality of life, but opting for the good, for the beautiful, for the just.

On the flip side, an impure person only sees evil everywhere. They are those who judge and are always willing show levity on each action. Being harsh censors, they often expect a purity that they do no have and violently criticize those who make efforts to achieve it.

The pure person identifies the evil where it really exists. They perceive and regret dishonesty, selfishness, perversion and cruelty.

Final Thoughts

Purity is something that can be achieved.

Struggling to overcome our own difficulties is hard but worthwhile. What we need is to stop wasting time criticizing the conducts of others and focusing on our own bad habits to overcome them patiently.

Mary Magdalene is an opportune example of purity achieved. Despite the great mistakes of his past, after meeting Jesus she began to cultivate purity in her life. Her story is an eloquent symbol of the victory of reason and will over passion and vices.

Becoming pure is possible and it only depends on our own efforts.

Adapted from Momento Espírita, originally published on January 10, 2018.

See Also

• The Power of Love
• Weighted observation
• The most important bridge
• Bridge of Life
• A Thinking Power
• Divine Poem

Unfinished Projects

For how long have you procrastinated on that project? For how long will you still procrastinate?

Photo by Craig Cameron on Unsplash

It is part of human nature to dream and idealize the most varied achievements.

A very common habit is the list we make at the beginning of each year, the famous New Year's proposals. We usually list habits to be abandoned, courses to be started and virtues to be acquired. Reasonable proposals and, in most cases, necessary for our development.

However, even before the first week of the year is over, the list is abandoned in the drawer, along with the sincere willingness to change that inspired it. Once again, all the the changes we promised to ourselves go into oblivion.

Whom do we hope to deceive?

But whom do we hope to deceive?

These abandoned projects can be anything: unconfessed loves, unfulfilled promises, abandoned dreams, songs never performed, flowers that have not bloomed, children who were not born, boats that never reached the sea, texts without period, work that never left the drawing board.

The days go by fast so remember that while we spend our days postponing projects, delaying starts and canceling changes, what could happen voluntarily ends up becoming mandatory.

One day, life will charge us for things we were supposed to achieve that we never carried out. What achievements will these be? Great achievements? Resounding achievements? Probably not.

Which project to complete?

Everyone has an unfinished project, so which one should we complete first?

In theory, each of us knows what is the urgent and most feasible at this time. However, it's important to remember that the most significant changes we can make is taming our own imperfections.

We argue that it's so hard to beat old habits, however, it's even more difficult to live with unhappy habits that bitter our lives and that of those around us. It is time to abandon the excuses that have served us on crutches for so long.

Final Thoughts

May today be a significant mark in the timeline of our lives.

It doesn't matter what day of the week it is or what month of the year we are in. There is no reason to wait for another opportunity.

Chances are like breezes that come and go quickly. Let us not remain stationary while life calls us to do good. Courage and willingness will be the inspiration we lacked.

Not tomorrow, but today. Not later, but from now on.

Adapted from Momento Espírita, originally published on June 10, 2016.

See Also

• The Power of Love
• Weighted observation
• The most important bridge
• Bridge of Life
• A Thinking Power
• Divine Poem

The Ideal Profession

Would you prefer being happy and work in something you love or be miserable working for money just to satisfy family traditions and external opinions?

Photo by Şahin Sezer Dinçer on Unsplash

One of the most important ingredients in a balanced and happy life is the professional aspect. After all, a substantial portion of human existence is spent on work.

Many choose their activity based on financial results, others take vanity and pride into account. Others are pressured from family traditions and external opinions.

But no one asks or cares about our tastes.

Because of that, many people today seem more condemned to forced labor than free and accomplished professionals. They abhor working days, while anxiously awaiting weekends, holidays and vacations.

Natural aptitudes

Natural aptitudes are a valuable indicator of activities that can be carried out with competence and satisfaction.

Do not forget that material life imposes requirements that must be satisfied. Each one of us has commitments that need to be accounted for.

There are professions suited to each one's character and abilities.

However, it is the nature of human life that we will face problems, challenges and difficulties. It is through coping with those challenges and difficulties that our character is honed and our virtues are asserted and developed.

Those looking for an ideal, well-paid profession, without pressure and free from crises, will not find it. Those who search a perfect job will constantly change jobs without ever being satisfied. Those who think they don't like anything become a burden for relatives and society.

Thus, finding the ideal profession is not a matter of seeking perfection, which does not really exist on Earth, but of identifying something whose accomplishment brings satisfaction.

Wage gaps

Remember that in modern society, wage gaps become smaller.

The most sophisticated professions, which require great preparation, always give rise to higher pay. However, more modest workers are also able to live with dignity.

In this context, personal talent is something to be considered. If there is a possibility, working on something you like will make your life light and pleasant.

Perhaps this job is not considered the best by friends and family. Perhaps it won't make a fortune. But who will play it is up to you to decide what suits you. Furthermore, no one can really stand out by doing something they don't like.

Final Thoughts

Without a vocation for a task, performance will always tend to be average, when not endured. And it's hard to be well paid for doing something you hate.

So, when choosing your profession, pay attention to your talents. Without forgetting practical aspects, look for something that you can do well and with pleasure.

This will make your life simpler and happier!

Adapted from Momento Espírita, originally published on October 08, 2018.

See Also

• The Power of Love
• Weighted observation
• The most important bridge
• Bridge of Life
• A Thinking Power
• Divine Poem

Suicide: a global calamity

Unfortunately, suicide is still a growing trend in our society. Learn how you can help changing that.

Photo by Noah Silliman on Unsplash

The Yellow September was instituted by the World Health Organization (WHO), on September 10th, 2003, as the date for the suicide prevention campaign worldwide. The growing number of occurrences each year has made this a major public health problem.

The causes are diverse but depression continues to be main one. Beyond that, financial stress, illnesses, drugs (legal and illegal), disillusionment with life and, of course, lack of religiosity make this incidence more and more worrying. The suicidal person does not want to stop living, they just want to “get rid” of the problems that affect them.

It's important not to ignore a pre-existing condition in the person's spirit. Most of us still carry some fragility from previous experiences which we all have to learn how to surpass. And unfortunately, this spiritual disease affects particularly those who believe that life ends in the grave. However, our Spirit lives on harvesting all the good (and/or bad) we realize in this life. Let us remember that life is a cycle of challenges and existences that necessary for our evolutionary process.

According to question 944, of The Spirits' Book, To shorten life is the greatest transgression of human beings to the Laws of God:

"Does man have the right to dispose of his life"?
- No; only God assists that right. Voluntary suicide means a violation of this law. 

The World Health Organization (WHO) defined, on January 22, 1998, that “health is a dynamic state of complete physical, mental, spiritual and social well-being, and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity”, and the Ministry of Health supports the Life Valuation Center (CVV). In 2017, 2 million people called free of charge to the number 188, which offers emotional support and suicide prevention. Imagine how many lives were spared from this folly ...

The numbers continue to increase. There are a total of 800,000 cases per year worldwide. The World Health Organization (WHO) has set a goal of reducing suicide deaths by 10% by 2020 which will not be easy, since the Covid-19 pandemic has contributed strongly to the growth of depressive processes.

When we believe in the Creator and that only in Him we have the support for our vicissitudes, we feel strengthened. Faith combined with perseverance and resignation leads us to the path of lesser pain, while the revolt it is the door of suffering. To revolt is to aggravate everything that already bothers us and we know that this attitude does not solve anything.

As long as the one does not seek within virtues such as humility, love, charity, fraternity (among many others), they will not leave this situation which imprisons them in despair.

A reunion with your self is the key to the true happiness that each of us has access to.

Conclusion

Let's try to be more aware about our struggles and learn to renounce what hinders our moral progress, such as selfishness, pride and other feelings that we carry with us. 

References

• Yellow Ribbon Suicide Prevention Program
• World Health Organization (WHO)

See Also

• Bridge of Life
• The poetry of life
  
• Weighted observation
  
• A Thinking Power