AMANDA'S BASKETS: RADICAL COMPASSION & PICTURES FROM TODAY'S WALK

Monday, July 7, 2014

RADICAL COMPASSION & PICTURES FROM TODAY'S WALK

So you may be asking what radical compassion is all about?

The dictionary defines compassion as ' sympathetic pity and concern for the sufferings or misfortunes of others'. And radical as 'relating to or affecting the fundamental nature of something; far-reaching or thorough'. One additional aspect of compassion is empathy which means 'the ability to understand and share the feelings of another'.

I like to think of radical compassion as totally and completely understanding, sharing and acting to help the feelings and concerns of someone. Being totally present to someone.

The term radical compassion was coined by Khen Lampert, philosopher, in 2003 when he identified radical compassion as a special case of empathy towards another that included an imperative to change reality in order to alleviate the pain of others.

Have you heard of Random Acts of Kindness? It was really big a few years ago. And it still continues today. A quick search on the internet will provide information about it. For instance, November 13, 2014 is Random Acts of Kindness Day. And February 9-15, 2015 is Random Acts of Kindness Week.

Random Acts of Kindness are a good way to practice compassion. And you know what? You don't have to wait for a particular day or week to do it. If you see someone stressed out or in need...do what you can to alleviate the situation...a comforting word, a hug, lunch for a hungry person or directions for someone who is lost.

Yes, there is more to compassion than just random acts of kindness, but isn't that a good place to begin? Why not try to do one act everyday this week. It doesn't have to be big and costly. It can be as small as a smile or a thank you. Give it a try and see how you feel...

PICTURES TAKEN ON A WALK THIS MORNING...

ZENTANGLE CHALLENGE: DAY THIRTY-NINE

I'm getting close to the end of this Zentangle Challenge and I can say without hesitation that I really have enjoyed it. There's still more to learn and I will be doing a lot more designs. Stay tuned.,,

So here are my goals for this week...

1. Lose one pound

2. Exercise every weekday

3. Post every weekday

4. Continue organizing my trailer

5. Continue working on the fence

6. Finish tag swap

7. Continue the writing project

8. Draw up plans for video

9. Finish blog plans for this month

10. Read, Read, Read

So how was your weekend? Mine was low keyed and wonderful. We were able to see three different fireworks displays from our home. And we did cook outside on the grill. We even had a few fireworks like sparklers...all done with a water hose at the ready!!! I hope your weekend was just as wonderful.

Thanks for visiting...

See you tomorrow...

CRAFTING IDEAS

I am always looking for a small piece of paper to write down something which will later be disposed of. I decided to use some of the scrap paper of which I have a ton. I mostly use the paper for glueing projects. I decided to cut the paper into a small size. (Six pieces from a piece of copy paper.). But just having them sitting on my desk would get messy without a container. So, using a cardboard box, I cut it down to size and using a hot glue gun I glued the ends together. Using a picture from a magazine cut into pieces and stick craft glue, I glued the pieces to the box inside and out. I also used some decorative tape for the outside edges. And to finish the top corners which were not covered, I used straight pins with colorful tops. Looks nice and works well.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

So in looking over your habits what did you find? Some popular good habits folks have are: Meditation, exercise, journal writing, flossing, reading and walking up early. Some not so great habits included smoking, saying yes, swearing, tolerating folks, not sleeping enough, always complaining and constantly making excuses. Do you have more good habits or more bad habits? Is it time to change? If so, start with the easiest bad habit to change, not the hardest. This will give the best chance of success. Decide on the best way for you to change your habit. Worry too much? Set a time to worry and then stop. You may have to stop yourself several times at the beginning but keep it up and you will worry less. Or, alternatively, write the worry down as well as options to stop the problem. Just figure out which way to stop is best for you.