On a bus trip, I noticed a very cute 2-year-old girl. Her face was beaming with happiness. It is the type of happiness which is all too rare these days. Every muscle in her face depicted joy and deep contentment. Her eyes sparkling with wonder and curiosity with a palpable sense of glee. I make a mental note, “I should write something on deep contentment”.
No more than a minute later, an elderly woman says “thank you” to the bus driver. “Good for you”, I think. It was a simple act, but an impressive one because of its sincere and earnest delivery. She really went out of her way to say thank you for a task which by and large goes unnoticed. A spontaneous act of kindness if ever there was one.
A few minutes more pass. A man in his early 20’s got on. He sees what I think is a plutonic female friend. When he greets her, he is really greeting her. It is not just a flippant mechanical hello, rather it is a wonderful expression of connection and the sincere warmth he feels for her. He hugs her deeply, I can see her face beginning to relax as the expression of “you really matter to me hits home”.
The bus trip was no more than 10 minutes long. A short trip, one I take frequently. And yes I must admit I do notice things like this all the time.
Noticing is one thing, but if it does not translate into some action then it only remains at the level of the head/intellectual. I reach inside of me, finding the calmness and spaciousness within and watching my mind and body. I have an intent and it is simply to see what I need to do with all this noticing if anything at all.
In a flash, the answer is upon me. I get off the bus a few stops earlier than I normally would. The walk will do me good I recognize. It is a way of being kind to my body and getting some needed exercise. I have thoughts of writing an article and what you are reading is the outcome.
We do not need to look far to see what to do next, but we most certainly need to look. It is also important to pay attention to what we are looking at. Our minds have been habituated to look for the negative. To combat this trend, we have to consciously look for things which are more positive in nature.