These words below are born with deep gratitude to Carrie Newcomerfor her essay “Be True, Be Kind, Pay Attention,” in her book The Beautiful Not Yet: Poems, Essays and Lyrics, published in 2016 by Available Light Publishing and available at www.carienewcommer.com. They are also born with deep gratitude to Cynthia Winton-Henry and Phil Porter for the gift of the Body Wisdom Tools in the system of Interplay (www.interplay.org). Especially the tool of affirmation, that calls us “to look for the good in any situation”; the tool of body data, body knowledge and body wisdom, that calls us to “notice, notice, notice what is happening in us body, mind, heart and spirit in any given moment”; and the tool of internal authority, which invites us to “trust what we are noticing”. They are also born with deep gratitude to my Appreciative Inquiry teacher Rev. Dr. Rob Voyle and his insight that when we pay attention to what we deeply love to do, it is a key to discovering our own life’s purpose.
Be true
Be true to your heart
Be true to your deepest knowing
Be true to what you love to do
Be true to what brings joy and gratitude and hope
Be true to what makes you shine
Be true to what makes you smile from the very depth of your soul
Be true to what makes your heart sing
Be true to the gift of who you are
Be true to the gift of all that love is bringing to life in you
Be true to your dreams even if they change shape a time or two along the way.
Be true and let beauty lead you home
Be true and trust your heart
Be true and trust your own deep wisdom
Be true and trust your soul to be your guide
Be true and listen for the whispers of grace and the brush of angels wings
Be true to your heart and discover all that you are born to be and do
Be True!
Be Kind
For kindness is love in action
Be kind to yourself “as kind as you would be to a close friend”
Be kind to your family
Be kind to your co-workers
Be kind to the clerk in the store
-even if he isn’t efficient,
-even if she isn’t friendly
-even the ones who are not kind to you!
Send kind thoughts to the driver who cutes you off in traffic
Send kind thoughts the person who annoys you
because he always has to have center stage
because she never pays attention
because he is always putting someone down
because she won’t listen to your point of view
because he values things you don’t understand
because she sees the world through different eyes
Be kind in your thoughts
Be kind in your words
Be kind in your actions
Be kind even as you are standing up for what you believe
Be kind because kindness matters
And “When forgiveness is hard to find, help me at least to be kind!”
Be Kind!
Pay attention
Notice what brings ease and joy and grace to you
Notice what evokes a deep smile from a stranger or a friend
Notice and trust what you notice
See the resilience of the human spirit
Recognize the breath of the Life and Love
in the wind
in the sun
in the rain
in the flowers
in the touch of a lover
in the laughter of a child
in the comfort of a friend
in the kindness of a stranger
Pay attention to what quickens your pulse
Pay attention to what triggers your fear
Pay attention to what takes your breath away and fills your heart with joy
Pay attention to what seems like a mistake and ask what lesson it can bring
Pay attention to the questions that rise from your soul
Pay attention to your life, so you can live it
Pay attention to your life, so you can be the best version of who you are
Pay attention to what you love and do it
Pay attention to your heart so it can guide you
Stop
Look
Listen
See
Hear
Be
Pay attention!
Be true, Be Kind, Pay attention
And live, truly live!
