Sangha of Auspicious Companions

August 20, 2017

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To Be Content Is to Be Grateful

Even after the most traumatic events, we can still find contentment. One way to achieve this is through gratitude. When Cynthia Mee lost everything in a house fire, instead of looking at it as something destructive, she saw it as educational — grateful for the life lessons she never would have encountered had it not happened. She was grateful for being alive; the fire hadn’t killed her. The Red Cross and firefighters were a huge help — how grateful she was for them, too. In fact, it was gratitude that sustained her throughout the challenges that came after the fire, allowing her to view the experience as less of a loss and more of an opportunity for growth. In times of trouble and even in our everyday lives, gratitude can become like a bridge to contentment, helping us realize and appreciate how much we have. Here is a perfect example of how it’s done. { read more }

Be The Change

Today, counter every complaint you have with a statement of gratitude.

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August 19, 2017

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The Three Sacred Tasks: A Climate Scientist & Father Reflects

Disconcerted by the dramatic changes underway in Earth’s climate systems, Climate scientist and father Peter Kalmus set out on a quest to change his life and the world. A quest that led him ultimately to cut his climate impact to less than a tenth of the US average, while simultaneous increasing his sense of joy and fulfillment. What follows are two excerpts from his new book “Being the Change: Live Well and Spark a Climate Revolution”. { read more }

Be The Change

For more on Peter Kalmus’ journey check out this in-depth interview. { more }

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August 18, 2017

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Rosanne Cash on How Science Saved Her Life

In a prelude to her reading of Adrienne Rich’s poetic tribute to Marie Curie, Roseanne Cash discusses the insights she gained as she battled to find a cure to her debilitating headaches. She realized the source of her creativity ‘comes from the same room as her deepest pain’ and argued that we have to listen deeply to our inner truth: “Persist and verify… The power that we abdicate to others out of our insecurity to others who insult us with their faux-intuition or their authoritarian smugness that comes back to hurt us so deeply… But the power we wrest from our own certitude that saves us.” { read more }

Be The Change

How can you use your moments of pain and darkness to be a source of light for others? Be still and listen to your own certitude.

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The Foster Father Who Cares for Terminally Ill Children

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August 17, 2017

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Algorithms & Love: Dancing with the Creative Tension of Our Time

“The data we can extract, the data we handily give up for the sake of short-term convenience or simply out of ignorance, is of monumental proportions. But we extract all this data to what end?” In a recent talk, ServiceSpace founder Nipun Mehta paints a vivid picture of today’s world — a world where algorithms powered by big data undergird almost every field of human endeavor, and have brought us to the brink of unprecedented change. While the benefits are undeniable, they come at a cost, to our freedom, creativity and more. What are our options? Mehta outlines two alternatives, to go from big data to bigger data — or to move instead towards deep data. “Big data is understood by silicon machines whereas deep data is processed by carbon-based life, humans. Big data is algorithmic, deep data is intuitive. Big data powers today’s Internet, but it is deep data that has powered the web of our connection — the innernet — for millennia.” Packed with sobering present-day examples, and stirring personal stories, this talk speaks to the possibilities that dance on the arc between algorithms — and love. { read more }

Be The Change

Question your current habitual uses of technology. How can you infuse your values into how you approach the digital world? For more inspiration read “#MakeVirtueGoViral” { more }

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August 16, 2017

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Enrique Martinez Celaya: Self and Beyond Self

The work of artist Enrique Martnez Celaya speaks for the dignity of interiority in a world absorbed by the external. Having essentially earned a PhD in quantum electronics, widely read in philosophy, a poet and writer, few are more qualified. He observes, “I don’t think the last century will be remembered as the age of computing or nuclear power, but the age when entertainment finally took over our consciousness. Authentic art-making is a journey. To discover one’s self is also to discover ones connection to the world. As one recognizes these connections, a prison sometimes becomes apparent; the prison of what we’ve established or imagined ourselves to be.”
{ read more }

Be The Change

Do you always take the same route home? Get coffee at the same place? When a habit is noticed, experiment and do something non-habitual. It can be a small thing.

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August 15, 2017

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Experiments in Kindness

Audrey Lin is a volunteer extraordinaire with ServiceSpace. With a degree in Peace and Conflict Studies, Lin has volunteered at the Gandhi Ashram in Ahmedabad, India; at Karma Kitchen in Berkeley, California;and has served as an educator on both the east and west coasts of the United States. While not everyone has the ability to travel abroad to volunteer, Lin’s life and perspectives remind us that anyone can participate in acts of kindness. In today’s busy world we are all ‘connected’ on social media, but often fail to connect in real life. Taking time out to really see and acknowledge people can have profound effects on both the person doing the kind act, and the person receiving it. In this talk she shares stories about the powerful ripple effects of kindness within and without. { read more }

Be The Change

Step outside of your usual patterns by finding a new way to express kindness today. For more inspiration tune into Saturday’s Awakin Call with Andy Smallman, discussing Kindness As an Avenue to Awe. RSVP and more details here. { more }

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August 14, 2017

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Spotlight on Seniors Who Are Changing the World

Retirement is a time finally away from bosses and schedules, stress and assignments. Yet, once retired, many miss the sense of purpose and community their jobs provided. Where retirement once called to mind visions of rocking chairs and mid-day snoozes, many in the Baby Boomer generation are shaking things up, turning their focus in retirement to encore careers and volunteerism. In this Spotlight on Seniors Who are Changing the World, we take a look at some extraordinary individuals who have used their ‘retirement’ as an opportunity to give back to the world and their communities in remarkable ways, finding along the path both passion and purpose in their golden years.
{ read more }

Be The Change

What steps can you take today to leave behind a legacy of kindness?

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Other ServiceSpace projects include:

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In Other News

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• DailyGood: Looking Past Limits: The Remarkable Story of Caroline Casey
• Awakin Reading: To Know Your Mind, Pay Close Attention To It

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August 13, 2017

Small Acts of Kindness

Featured Kindness Stories

	The baby left at the church’s nursery found a safe sanctuary.
	A child’s note on a toy box led to a series of events in his community.
	The hospital sent her to four different patients to play the harp.

Idea of the Week