What Matters Most

Since I haven’t posted in a bit I figure I’ll try to make this a positive post. As the title

Bodhisattva of Compassion Empowerment, His Holiness Jigdal Dagchen Sakya reads the text to his students, Sakya Monastery of Tibetan Buddhism, North Seattle, Washington, USA 7943.jpg —— 2009? (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

suggests I am thinking of what matters most, not just to me but in general. A lot of blogger friends are dealing with difficulties above and beyond the expected ones daily life throws at you. Thus, I wanted to reflect on gratitude. I often ignore what I have and get caught up in pitying myself or becoming morose because of something or other happening (that usually isn’t as big of a deal as I first imagine it to be). So what have I got to be grateful for you may ask? I think a number of things:

• Being alive.
• My dad.
• My health even if it’s not perfect.
• My mom no longer abusing me(she’s dead) and the lessons I learned from her.
• Having a roof over my head and heat to keep me warm (it’s winter here!).
• Being a woman in Canada after hearing the high rate of crimes against women in some countries.
• Access to clean water for drinking and washing.
• Enough food and the ability to be vegetarian.
• Knowing I can say what I want (for the most part) and not worry about government officials or military imprisoning me.
• Having met a number of truly wonderful people in my past and the present.
• Psychotherapy.
• Achieving a level of awareness of myself I never had until the last year or two.
• Mindfulness Meditation and Buddhism.
• The freedom to practice/believe whatever religion or philosophy I want to.
• The right to be child-free if I so choose.
• All animals and companion animals(pets).
• Learning I have rights and personal boundaries deserving of respect.
• The internet.
• Coping tools that are actually healthy!
• Realizing everyone and everything is interconnected.
• Recognizing it’s okay to have a religion and learning to respect different beliefs.
• Being intuitive and perceptive.
• Learning to shed my type ‘A’ habits and be okay with some disorganization and tardiness.
• Learning to see shades of gray in life and not thinking in black and white (most of the time).
• My education.
• Books.
• Having the ability to explore my career choices and not worry excessively about the
  

  Self-compassion is your greatest source of strength (Photo credit: wildphotons)

  fact I’m unemployed.

• Self-compassion.
• Compassion.
• Knowing what my feelings are and being able to identify them and sit with them.
• Recognizing I am worthy and deserve happiness and love.
• Empathy-learning to feel it and receiving it.
• Forgiveness of self and others who’ve hurt me in the past.
• Love.

Those are just some of the things I’m grateful for. So what are you grateful for? Do you take time to practice gratitude in your daily life?

©Sonamsangmu, 2013.

 

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