Small Moments

Have you been taking notice of your small moments?  As we embarked on 2012, I wished many of you a year of small moments and the wisdom to recognize them.  These experiences are everywhere but may be missed if we aren’t paying attention.  I like to think of small moments as brief encounters that strike a resounding chord with us that a bigger change has occurred.

I have already caught myself several times this year in my own small moments.  One of the more noticeable ones for me occurred the other morning, when my son blew me a kiss and called to me to have a great day as he got on the bus.  The innocence and sincerity in his smile truly warmed me from within but with chasing after my daughter and talking to neighbors I didn’t initially recognize my own small moment.

However, as the day carried on I continued to reflect on this quick exchange with my son.  What inner confidence and compassion my son has to independently get on the bus and then stop and proudly call out to me, as if he knows with just a small action he can brighten someone else’s day so easily.  I believe generosity of the heart is innate to all of us but it is cultivated and strengthened as we develop our inner values of love and compassion.   My son likely doesn’t realize it now but the compassion he openly demonstrates, helps to reduce fear, increases his confidence and builds inner strength within him.  This small moment left me feeling some sense of accomplishment knowing his actions are a direct result of what he witnesses and learns from those around him.

Compassion is a marvel of human nature, a precious inner resource, and the foundation of our well-being and the harmony of our societies. If we seek happiness for ourselves, we should practice compassion: and if we seek happiness for others, we should also practice compassion. ~ Dalai Lama

~The divine in me salutes the divine in you, Namaste~