I would love to have you join me at an event that is very dear to my heart. It will be the only public gathering I will be helping host on the West Coast this year.
Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche will join me to offer a retreat on the theme of cultivating the heart of human bravery. We will be joined by the Right Reverend Marc Andrus, Bishop of the Episcopal Church of California, and Acharya Adam Lobel, a Buddhist minister and a scholar of philosophy and religion.
This global gathering, called Being Brave, will be offered May 2-4, 2014 at the Craneway Pavilion in Richmond, California (near San Francisco). During the weekend, we will draw on Shambhala, Buddhist, and Christian perspectives to explore these questions:
* What can meditation practice and the contemplative wisdom traditions offer to the pressing personal, social, and ecological challenges we face?
* How do we work with fear, anger, and distress when we think of the ecological, political, economic, and social challenges in our world?
* How can we cultivate an inner state of being that is brave and genuine enough to make a difference in both our communities where we live and on the planet we all share?
I feel very deeply that if we gather together in this way – meditating, contemplating, and sharing our hearts – we can create a genuine and non-aggressive, yet powerful force for transformation that is needed today more than ever. Please join us to help make this an unforgettable gathering for personal and societal renewal.
You can find complete program and registration information on the Being Brave website: beingbrave.com
Sincerely,
Pema Chödrön
P.S. If you are financially able help others to attend this program, please consider donating to the scholarship fund. To contribute, go to the Registration page and fill in the amount you wish to donate on the Donate to the Scholarship Fund line.
You’re receiving this email because you are a DailyGood subscriber.
Trouble Viewing? On a mobile? Just click here. Not interested anymore? Unsubscribe.
As we look ahead into the next century, leaders will be those who empower others.
– Bill Gates –
What Does A Grateful Organization Look Like?
When was the last time you expressed gratitude to a co-worker, or received expressions of gratitude from one? Or when was the last time you thanked or were thanked by your supervisor? According to the latest research, gratitude in organizations is extremely significant — for starters, it can boost morale and increase productivity. A recent quiz developed by the Greater Good Science Center, reveals some interesting findings on how people see and experience gratitude in the work place. { read more }
Be The Change
Take the quiz yourself and see how your company stacks up on the gratitude scale according to this mode of assessment. { more }
For over a decade the KindSpring community has focused on inner transformation, while collectively changing the world with generosity, gratitude, and trust. We are 100% volunteer-run and totally non-commercial. KindSpring is a labor of love.
Inspiring Quote
“We’ve all been given a gift, the gift of life. what we do with our lives is the gift back.” – Edo
Member of the Week
Congratulations! We are inspired by your meaningful kind acts like treating your neighbors to ice cream. Keep spreading the smiles! Send BigQuack some KarmaBucks and say hello.
This newsletter reaches 111,094 subscribers, and you can unsubscribe instantly.
March 30, 2014
Editor’s note: A beautiful note posted on our feed this morning! "Let someone love you, just the way you are, as flawed as you might be… To believe that you must hide all the parts of you that are broken out of fear that someone else is incapable of loving what is less than perfect, is to believe that sunlight is incapable of entering a broken window and illuminating a dark room." – Marc Hack
Small Acts of Kindness
leoladyc728 wrote: “Today I fed one of my homeless friends before I went to work. I also gave my two students gel pens today. The girls love them.”
loispoet wrote: “Just want to share this saying I came across that is oh so true. “When the power of love over comes the love if power, the world will know peace”. Hoping all have a peaceful weekend.”
jolly wrote: “Stop trying to buy happiness. The truth is, the things that really satisfy us are totally free: Love, laughter and working on our passion.”
You’re receiving this email because you are a DailyGood subscriber.
Trouble Viewing? On a mobile? Just click here. Not interested anymore? Unsubscribe.
With the past, I have nothing to do; nor with the future. I live now.
– Ralph Waldo Emerson –
A Radical Homemaker Celebrates 40
Shannon Hayes, mother and homemaker on a family farm, used to spend birthdays mourning the passing of another year. But on her 40th she decides instead to spend the day in celebration and joy by giving herself an important gift. In this touching piece, Shannon shares how she learned that turning 40 meant being “grown-up enough, confident enough, fearless enough to face my deepest, most secret dreams and bring them out into the world,” and embracing “all those forces that seemingly work against those dreams, those burdens I have chosen by the act of living and surrendering myself to those that I love.” { read more }
Be The Change
How can you take a moment you usually dread and turn it in to a reason to celebrate?
You’re receiving this email because you are a DailyGood subscriber.
Trouble Viewing? On a mobile? Just click here. Not interested anymore? Unsubscribe.
Habitual recurrence to the harmony will increase your mastery of it.
– Marcus Aurelius –
Timeless Wisdom From Marcus Aurelius
Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius’ most enduring legacy is not his external power, but his deeply held conviction that each one of us is endowed with the inner power to control our minds and responses to external events. In his extensive compilation of writings, collectively titled ‘Meditations’, Aurelius describes how to develop a mindset that can deal well with any experiences or emotions that arise. Among these teachings are that your own happiness is up to you. There is good in everyone, and life should be treated as an old, faithful friend. In the words of Aurelius, “Everything contains some special purpose and a hidden blessing; what then could be strange or arduous when all of life is here to greet you like an old and faithful friend?” { read more }
Be The Change
Take a tip from Aurelius today: “There is nowhere that a man can find a more peaceful and trouble-free retreat than in his own mind … So constantly give yourself this retreat, and renew yourself.”
You’re receiving this email because you are a DailyGood subscriber.
Trouble Viewing? On a mobile? Just click here. Not interested anymore? Unsubscribe.
The most important thing in life is knowing the most important things in life.
– David F. Jakielo –
The Difference Between Meaning & Happiness
Philosophers, researchers, spiritual leaders — they’ve all debated what makes life worth living. Is it a life filled with happiness or a life filled with purpose and meaning? Is there even a difference between the two? Recently some researchers have explored these questions in depth, trying to tease apart the differences between a meaningful life and a happy one. Their research suggests there’s more to life than happiness — and even calls into question some previous findings from the field of positive psychology. This piece shares more. { read more }
Be The Change
Strive for balance in all areas of your daily life, and discover those pockets of happiness inside the meaning.
This week’s inspiring video: Catch the Rain
Having trouble reading this mail? View it in your browser. Not interested anymore? Unsubscribe
Video of the Week
Mar 27, 2014
Catch the Rain
Clean, fresh water. We can’t live without it. And yet, it is in short supply. Much of what is available has been polluted. This simple, elegant film makes the case for harvesting our fresh water directly from the sky — the way people have been doing for millennia.
You’re receiving this email because you are a DailyGood subscriber.
Trouble Viewing? On a mobile? Just click here. Not interested anymore? Unsubscribe.
When we try to pick out anything by itself, we find it hitched to everything else in the Universe.
– John Muir –
How Wolves Change Rivers
When wolves were reintroduced to Yellowstone National Park in the United States after being absent for nearly 70 years, the most remarkable “trophic cascade” occurred. What is a trophic cascade and how exactly do wolves change rivers? British environmental journalist George Monbiot explains in this video remix by Sustainable Man. { read more }
Be The Change
Take a moment to think deeply about how your actions impact ecosystems all over the world in a wide variety of ways. Can you begin a cascade of positive effects by changing some of your actions?
You’re receiving this email because you are a DailyGood subscriber.
Trouble Viewing? On a mobile? Just click here. Not interested anymore? Unsubscribe.
Things don’t change. You change your way of looking, that’s all.
– Carlos Castaneda –
Three Short Pieces To Reframe Your Day
“Footsteps in the hall and the familiar sound of a key turning in its lock. My husband is home. He drops his lunch bag by the door like a schoolboy. Hurry, he says, there’s something time-sensitive you need to see. I am pulled to my feet by curiosity and the urgency in his voice. We hustle into the cool, dark arms of a January night..” In these three short pieces a writer opens a window onto everyday moments, inspiring an appreciation for the beauty that lurks in the ordinary. { read more }
Be The Change
Pay close attention to something that is part of your daily routine, like waiting in line at the grocery store or commuting to work. Find beauty in that moment and share it with a friend.
You’re receiving this email because you are a DailyGood subscriber.
Trouble Viewing? On a mobile? Just click here. Not interested anymore? Unsubscribe.
Concentrate all your thoughts upon the work at hand. The sun’s rays do not burn until brought to a focus.
– Alexander Graham Bell –
Q&A With Daniel Goleman
“I think attentional skills are fundamentally under siege today. Never before in human history have there been so many seductive distractors in a person’s day, in a given hour, or in 10 minutes…I think this is another reason to develop a meta-awareness about where our attention has gone. I think we need to make more effort and cultivate more strength to detach [our attention] from that thing that is so tempting over there, and bring it back to the person in front of us.” Have you ever had the experience of being “alone together” — sitting in the same space with someone, while both of you stare at a screen? For anyone who feels the temptations of electronic distractions, you may want to learn more from Daniel Goleman and his new book “Focus.” { read more }
Be The Change
This week try becoming more conscious of where your attention is when you are in meetings or in conversations with family and friends.
Editor’s note: A beautiful note posted on our feed this morning! "Let someone love you, just the way you are, as flawed as you might be… To believe that you must hide all the parts of you that are broken out of fear that someone else is incapable of loving what is less than perfect, is to believe that sunlight is incapable of entering a broken window and illuminating a dark room." – Marc Hack
Sangha of Auspicious Companions 