Change

We use the quote of Gandhi, but Gandhi didn’t say “Be the change you want to see in the world…” Here’s the real quote.

“We but mirror the world. All the tendencies present in the outer world are to be found in the world of our body. If we could change ourselves, the tendencies in the world would also change. As a man changes his own nature, so does the attitude of the world change towards him. This is the divine mystery supreme. A wonderful thing it is and the source of our happiness. We need not wait to see what others do.” – Mahatma Gandhi

If we want to make a difference in the world around us, we start here, with ourselves. We can’t shine a light out into the world if our own fire is dampened. The rekindling starts from within when we find the source. We rebuild. We grow. One technique is to think about love throughout the day. It doesn’t matter if we sing or doodle, use our imagination or our voice; what matters is the emotion we experience inside. If remembering a hike taken on a sunny day in Colorado brings love, then remind yourself of that moment. Pull up the photos if you have time. Bask in the glow of love. 

There are many ways we can bring love into the moment. Humming a simple song works. Even if you don’t know the lyrics, experiment with our voice and scat, “shoo-doo-shoo-bee-ooo-bee” for fun. I have practiced sitting in stillness and deliberately slowing my breathing. I cultivate feelings of love by visualizing people or creatures I care about. Whether it’s my family, my pets, or even frogs swimming in a pond, my heart becomes stronger and overflows with love. Can you hold yourself in love for five minutes? Maybe ten minutes of song? Try this for a week, for 5 to 10 minutes at a time. Maybe set an alarm on your phone to help remember. Keep it light. Love is patient, love is kind.

Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends. – 1 Corinthians 13:4–8a (ESV)

Love embraces and resists | Bethany

Hold the love.