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Category Archives: Compassion

In This Together . .

05 Tuesday Jul 2016

Posted by Cheryl Ries in Attitude, Character, Compassion, Contentment, Family, Gratitude, Kindness, Life, Maturity, Wisdom

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God, Humanity, Peace

Have you ever seen a baby born? I’m sure we all have, whether on television or in real life! We’ve noticed the striking similarity of all babies born in the world, regardless their skin color, their nationality, their nation’s economic status, or the timing of the arrival. All babies born in the world come without anything. They come sans clothing, food, shelter, shoes, or material goods of any kind. They all come via some parentage, but many are even separated permanently from that human connection. What we should find most striking in this comparison isn’t that we come at all, but that we all have made it as far as we have! 

 

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We have much to ponder when we consider this fact:  perhaps we don’t have all that we would want to live by our own standards when born, but in some way we have all we need, otherwise we would surely all come bearing something more than just ourselves. Perhaps we’re truly meant to find our way into various compassionate communities (for example – family, friends, neighbors) where we are taught to be good members of that community and to be responsible for one another? It is only when we start to believe we won’t be given all we want, that we start to think we’re deserving and entitled to more than we need.  Our desire to have that which isn’t our’s easily or naturally morphs from a noble motivation to attain and achieve some personal goals as well as dreams, into instead a raging fuel which ignites our lust, jealousy, greed and thus, tyranny.  

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Whatever it is we amass from birth with integrity, through our own efforts, with a lack of malice is ours rightfully. God blesses us each differently, each uniquely according to His desires. What is ours is ours, what is someone else’s belongs to them. It is not our place to deem His motives, but to make righteous our own! And we have each other, lest we forget that the hands we rely upon to take us from our bare-naked infancy to sustainable life, are our fellow humans. Why do we then learn so easily to repudiate these essential components of community into which we are surely purposefully born, all the while choosing often to be self-serving and self-involved instead?! We’re meant to be for each other without taking from each other. We’re meant to coexist without coveting. We’re meant to weave together as one patchwork of variation (language, color, beliefs, etc.) without repudiation! Perhaps what was inside of you when born actually matters more than anything on the outside anyway?!

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Looking Out For One Another . .

20 Saturday Feb 2016

Posted by Cheryl Ries in Compassion, Gentleness, Goodness, Gratitude, Life

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Companionship, Connection, Protective Instincts

It was all meant to be the other day on my hike! I was alone that day and challenging myself to a tougher trail up the mountain. I hadn’t done that particular trail for a while, at least in a year; but since my friends couldn’t join me, I decided to try it anew. The challenge was looming large in my mind at this, the onset of a new hiking season. So I took my own challenge and started up the mountain. After about two-thirds the distance to the top, I met up with a young man who was accompanied by his nine-month-old German Shepherd pup. They were stopped for a moment, hanging out on the trail which had narrowed considerably by then, as it becomes a series of switchbacks leading to the top. So there they were, nice guy and adorable puppy! I greeted them both, one with a “hello” and the other with a hand, which was promptly licked enthusiastically. After our moment of greeting, I sort of waited for them to head on in front of me, as by that point I was ready to stop for a rest! The hike was getting steeper with each new step and much rockier as well, and going even a few feet upward was challenging. 12744285_771033079697514_2353505684115410206_n

 

So I followed along as soon as they headed on up the trail, and realized quickly that the sweet, young dog was going to keep watch on me. From there on, that puppy was a guardian and watchdog, noticing where I was in regards to where he and his human now were. I felt instantly included in their group, although I had never met either Brian or Clancy before. Suddenly, here I was joined by two males for the rest of the way up. And I was glad, as I soon realized that Brian would give me tips as to where I should veer and in what manner I should progress; all while Clancy the dog would adamantly sit and refuse to move until I caught up with them! It was a great hike in the end, as I felt protected and guarded, by two souls I had never met before.  phx3d

 

It reminded me that although we often undertake our endeavors alone, we can connect with people and even animals in truly profound ways! I’m not sure I will ever see either Brian or Clancy again, but I do know for a fact that if anything had happened to me while hiking up that trail or back down again, both would have helped me out! I know for certain that for the first time back on that more difficult trail in a long time, I had protection and companionship! I was not alone or on my own. And isn’t that the ultimate reason we’ve all been plopped down here on the planet together? Aren’t we all meant to connect and to relate to one another through our humanity, and with our fellow creatures? That one day of hiking held for me a lot of meaning in what was happening on the trail and in my heart. It felt wonderful to be so enveloped by hearts both human and non-human! Now I can return to that trail again soon, confident that even without my male guards and companions, I can do it just as I did it the other day! And who knows? Maybe I will again run into those gentle souls who watched out for me and kept me company.   Signature02

Giving From Our Gratitude . .

28 Saturday Nov 2015

Posted by Cheryl Ries in Attitude, Christmas, Compassion, Fullness, Giving, God, Goodness, Gratitude

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Generosity, God, Stewardship

Giving isn’t just monetary; there are opportunities to give our time, to share our talents, our abilities, to make meals, to help friends as well as soon-to-be new friends who we know need a hand. There are ways to give from the heart at every turn of the calendar, clock face and sun rising. Giving of oneself is a way to truly show gratitude for life’s bounty! For it is by our acknowledgement of how truly blessed we are in all manners and ways, that we grow in our desire to share with others our blessings of all kinds!

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I enjoy baking, cooking and providing comfort for others, so when I have that opportunity, I do so with a happy heart and a glad spirit! I often bake dozens of cookies for a local long-term care nursing facility at Christmas, as the patients and staff appreciate such gestures. Whatever way it is that you can give from the heart to all those around you, can truly provide a great way to share with others the many blessings in which your life has been enriched! Some of us are amply blessed monetarily, and so we have the chance to share in money. Others have time to give to people who need a hand, and so they share their time by being a blessing to others. Some might make gifts or treasures by which they might either directly offer gifts or raise funds.

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Gratitude in spirit always leads to giving, for it is only in sharing that we can truly appreciate the value and meaning of our blessings! God has been so good to us, providing all His richness of bounty to us over our lifetimes in the form of materials goods, possessions, comforts and wealth; our gratitude and giving is the way we exemplify our stewardship for those treasures to Him!  Signature02

The World is Never “Hopeless” . .

12 Thursday Mar 2015

Posted by Cheryl Ries in Attitude, Beauty, Character, Choices, Compassion, Discipline, Gentleness, Goodness

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Compassion, Kindess, Love

The world around us can never be “hopeless” as long as there is even just one soul acting with love and compassion towards the rest. Imagine if and when we all just decide to be loving, compassionate and respectful regardless what we experience or see nearby? Imagine if we all just kept our composure when confronted by anger or hostility; if we remained calm when goaded and pushed to our limits? Surely it is hard to imagine doing when we are facing what we perceive as ignorance, rudeness or contemptible behavior; but our reactions are up to us! We can keep the peace, carry on and give up the need to join in the fray and the melee when we witness bad behavior and ill-will in others. Good prevails over all the rest of the ugliness because the seeds of love, compassion and kindness we plant are always more enduring than the unwanted weed-seeds of evil, hate, animosity and derision.      477f19970845716de019ab225ffd4a56

 

It’s so easy to see the actions of a few in our life’s garden and think they represent the hearts of many. They may even grow to the point of seemingly overshadowing or choking out the rest of what was first seeded there. But how it is seeded is how it then grows! A seed for one thing will not grow to be another thing entirely. With just enough time, energy, effort and nurturing, you can make any garden reflect what it was meant to. 

 

The many hearts of the loving, good, gentle, compassionate and kind, acting and behaving that way, shouldn’t and won’t be rendered silent in lieu of the few. Those hearts, filled with love, kindness, goodness and compassion, should always insist and persist in sowing those seeds abundantly into life . . after all, a rose is always a rose regardless what grows up around it! And with more roses and other such desirable words, actions and behaviors seeded, nurtured and grown to fruition – how could life’s garden be anything but more beautiful and hopeful?!   Signature02

 

A Big Tug Of War

24 Monday Sep 2012

Posted by Cheryl Ries in Compassion, Empathy, Giving

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A Big Tug Of War  

Sometimes the world seems like a big tug of war . . this one pulls, that one pulls harder back. If we all just committed to doing, being & giving our best, I believe the tug of war would inherently lessen!
If there were no perceived injustices, because we knew that we all were doing, being & giving our best to one another, then there would be no need to seek retribution or justice. We would just be able to relate to one another’s mistakes or inabilities because we were giving them the benefit of the doubt for just having done the best they could!

If we related to one another with humility, with empathy, compassion & a desire to treat others as we wished to be treated ourselves, ego & selfishness would take a backseat to the desire to be humane, unselfish, respectful, compassionate & polite. We need to be civil in the world to share it . . to show our humanity by individual acts which reflect that to others. First, it is up to each of us to mirror how we wish to be treated, for how can we expect in others what we haven’t nurtured in ourselves? Have a great new day!

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Cheryl Ries-Author & Model

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