Sangha of Auspicious Companions

Kindness Daily: 12 Caring Women

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12 Caring Women April 30, 2012 – Posted by bjames306 One year ago twelve friends got together and formed a group. We call ourselves “12 Caring Women". We meet once a month and take turns hosting the event. We each donate $20 except the hostess who donates $25 so we have $250 each month for a worthy cause. When we meet we discuss needs in the community and decide on a worthwhile cause. One month we donated to a single lady who was attempting to get a baby to the U.S. from Haiti after the earthquake. Over the past year we have helped many people in dire need. We work with the local Social Services organization as well as the guidance counselor at a local school to find people in need. If we don’t have a pressing need one month we give the money to the chaplain at the local free clinic. While we have helped many people we feel we have benefited much more from giving. I’m writing this in hopes that it might spur others to begin a similar group. Add/View Comment >> About Newsletter Kindness Daily is an email that delivers today’s featured story from HelpOthers.org. If you’d rather not receive this email, you can also unsubscribe. Similar Stories It’s the little things that matter, by maliceyalice The Day Star Trek Came Alive, by snowflake66 The Joys of Being a Waitress, by Babygirl A Firefighter’s Point of View, by Moran Joys of Picking Tamarind, by guin Helpful Links Smile Cards: do an act of kindness and leave a card behind to keep the chain going. Smile Decks: 52 cards with a kindness idea on each! Smile Groups: share your own stories, make friends, spread the good. Smile Ideas: loads of ideas that can support your drive of kindness. Unsubscribe If you’d rather not receive these stories by email, you can remove yourself with two easy clicks. Community

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9 Steps to Achieving Flow (and Happiness) at Work

[Flow means] being completely involved in an activity for its own sake. The ego falls away. Time flies. Every action, movement, and thought follows inevitably from the previous one, like playing jazz. — Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi

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Tip of the Day:
Have you ever lost yourself in your work, so much so that you lost track of time? Being consumed by a task like that, while it can be rare for most people, is a state of being called Flow. In my experience, it’s one of the keys to happiness at work, and a nice side benefit is that it not only reduces stress but increases your productivity. So how do you achieve this mystical state of being? Do you need to meditate or chant anything? No, you don’t (although meditation can improve your ability to concentrate). And Flow is anything but mystical — it’s very practical, and achieving it isn’t mysterious. It can take practice, but you’ll get better at it. Here are the key steps to achieving and benefiting from Flow:” Leo Babauta shares further.
http://premiere.whatcounts.com/t?ctl=16AD331:C3009629A010612CD3EEE565ACA299F1B4B847859706E37D&

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Be The Change:
The author of the seminal book, “Flow,” summarizes his theory for optimal experience in this short passage.
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Smile Newsletter: Three Strings of Itzhak Perlman

Apr 29, 2012 “You have succeeded in life when all you really want is only what you really need.” — Vernon Howard “My mother in law was telling me about her neighbour. Doris is 79 years old and lives by herself since her husband passed away last year. Her husband used to be very proud of his garden and always kept it looking pristine. Unfortunately Doris isn’t well enough to be able to look after her garden so it is very overgrown. When I heard this it really struck a chord with me and sounded like the ideal opportunity for me to help someone who needed it.This afternoon I spent three hours sorting Doris’ garden out for her. It now looks great. Doris is happy. I’m happy. Life is good!”– adds [ share your story >> ] You can also contribute comments on each story! Celebrate Pay It Forward Day, April 26th >> Helping My Brother Not To Stumble >> Three Strings of Itzhak Perlman >> More Stories >> “Kind words are short and easy to speak but their echoes are endless…This motivates me to be kind.”–komalpawar What is a “smile card”? It’s a game of kindness — do something nice for someone and leave a card behind asking them to pay it forward. To date, 1,024,820 cards have been shipped without any charge. The ‘Smiles’ newsletter is emailed to 89,962 subscribers with the intent of spreading more smiles in the world. You can unsubscribe anytime. get smile cards | donate | write to us

Love and Play: a Conversation w/ Chaz

Love is the only sane and satisfactory answer to the problem of human existence. — Eric Fromm

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Inspiration of the Day:
“When he speaks, you can sense a depth of earnest care in his voice. When you hear his stories, you know you’re in the presence of a sacred soul. And it sort of sneaks up on you that he’s served in hospices and with the homeless, that he spends his days mentoring college students as UPenn’s University Chaplain. From gentle stories about his daughters to lessons from his “knucklehead punk” youth days, and revolutionary New Year’s resolutions, Rev. Charles Howard — or Chaz, as he is lovingly known — shared insights along the valleys and peaks of his service journey, and the inter-connections that stand woven underneath it all.”
http://premiere.whatcounts.com/t?ctl=16AD2AA:C3009629A010612CE97B33BBCCDDE836B4B847859706E37D&

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Be The Change:
“Remember that you don’t choose love. Love chooses you. All you can really do is accept it for all its mystery when it comes into your life.”
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The Northern Lights in Action

My view is that if your philosophy is not unsettled daily then you are blind to all the universe has to offer. — Neil deGrasse Tyson

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Inspiration of the Day:
Few things take our breath away so easily, so seamlessly as images of our world — Aurora Borealis, the Northern Lights. Sit back for the next two minutes and let the spectacle of our cosmos fill your senses. The deep emotional relationship we feel to our planet is evident.
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Be The Change:
Watch the sky today, reflecting on “all the universe has to offer.”

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Kindness Daily: Doing Good In The Garden

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Doing Good In The Garden April 27, 2012 – Posted by adds My mother in law was telling me about her neighbour. Doris is 79 years old and lives by herself since her husband passed away last year. Her husband used to be very proud of his garden and always kept it looking pristine. Unfortunately Doris isn’t well enough to be able to look after her garden so it is very overgrown. When I heard this it really struck a chord with me and sounded like the ideal opportunity for me to help someone who needed it. This afternoon I spent three hours sorting Doris’ garden out for her. It now looks great. Doris is happy. I’m happy. Life is good! Add/View Comment >> About Newsletter Kindness Daily is an email that delivers today’s featured story from HelpOthers.org. If you’d rather not receive this email, you can also unsubscribe. Similar Stories Running On Empty, by jacqueline A Goal of Kindness, Smiles, and a Slurpee., by snowflake66 The Seed Has A Sprout, by justoneheart Thirst Quencher On Busy Day, by ganon You Never Know, by PamelaJo Helpful Links Smile Cards: do an act of kindness and leave a card behind to keep the chain going. Smile Decks: 52 cards with a kindness idea on each! Smile Groups: share your own stories, make friends, spread the good. Smile Ideas: loads of ideas that can support your drive of kindness. Unsubscribe If you’d rather not receive these stories by email, you can remove yourself with two easy clicks. Community

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Video of the Week: Ekatva – Oneness

You’re receiving this newsletter because you are a KarmaTube subscriber. Having trouble reading this mail? View it in your browser. Not interested anymore? Unsubscribe Video of the Week Apr 27, 2012 Ekatva – Oneness 16 youth from a slum in India, 1 renowned dance academy, and 1 inspiring NGO from the Gandhi Ashram come together to bring a message of “Ekatva” – “Oneness.” At a time when the world is more accustomed to messages of war than peace, this is, perhaps, the best antidote to our troubled times. It is a story that can open minds and hearts. These youth are touring India, the US, and the UK as ambassadors of Oneness. Share: Related KarmaTube Videos The Girl Who Silenced the World at the UN The Koh Panyee Football Club The Power of Music Me to We: Generosity Everyday About KarmaTube: KarmaTube is a collection of inspiring videos accompanied by simple actions every viewer can take. We invite you to get involved. Other ServiceSpace Projects: DailyGood // Conversations // iJourney // HelpOthers MovedByLove // CF Sites // Karma Kitchen // More Thank you for helping us spread the good. This newsletter now reaches 43,093 subscribers.

The 8 Core Beliefs of Extraordinary Bosses

Your outlook affects your outcome. — John Paul Warren

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Good News of the Day:
A few years ago, Geoffrey James interviewed some of the most successful CEOs in the world in an attempt to uncover the secret of their leadership abilities. He learned that the world’s most accomplished managers have a fundamentally different understanding of workplace, company, and team dynamics. According to James, the “best of the best” tend to share the following eight core beliefs.
http://premiere.whatcounts.com/t?ctl=16ACF52:C3009629A010612C53237B0065E23A0DB4B847859706E37D&

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Be The Change:
For further inspiration, a short passage called “Business Lessons from A Quiet Gardener,” which describes the connection between servant leadership and gardening.
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Celebrating Pay-it-Forward Day

Give like the rose gives its perfume — effortlessly, unconditionally because it is its own nature. — Swami Vivekananda

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Good News of the Day:
Today, April 26th, is Pay-it-Forward Day, and to get fired up to celebrate it, here are ten great, real-world stories. Each demonstrates a different way of expressing kindness — anonymously, just because it is in our own true nature.
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Be The Change:
You guessed it — celebrate Pay-it-Forward day with your own anonymous act of kindness. If you feel inspired to, share it with others here.
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Kindness Daily: Celebrate Pay It Forward Day, April 26th

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Celebrate Pay It Forward Day, April 26th April 25, 2012 – Posted by HelpOthers Pay It Forward Day is coming up on Thursday April 26th and we invite you to celebrate with us by doing an act of kindness! Below are some kindness ideas, based on some of our favorite real-life HelpOthers’ pay-it-forward stories. And we invite you to share how you celebrated by leaving a comment on this story! 1. The tried and tested – pay for the coffee for the person in the line behind you. Andrew was a bit anxious when he tried to do this for the first time and wasn’t sure it would work – a week later, the coffee shop tags him with a free cup of coffee for being cheerful and friendly! (more…)