A cup of kindness…

Let’s face it, we all have bad days. Days that feel like they will never end, days that feel like the world is against you, days that feel like you can’t get anything right… days that feel like you can’t relate to anyone. Now there are several ways to deal with these bad days… but I’m going to let you all in on a little secret… the best remedy for a bad day is not to shop til you drop, it’s not devouring a double chocolate fudge cake, it’s not complaining on end to your friends or your spouse about how rotten the world is… I find that the quickest way (though sometimes not the easiest) to deal with having a bad day is to take a few moments, take some deep breaths, and dive deep within yourself – embrace your spirit of kindness and share it with everyone within your radius.

Sometimes it feels like we get so caught up in the smallness of daily activities that we forget to reconnect with our kind spirit within. It’s as if you are a body walking along a busy street- and in your hand is a set of three balloons… your head, heart, and spirit. Instead of feeling ‘connected’ it’s as if these three balloons are merely tethered to your body … just hanging out there.

The one element that can bring it all back together again is, you guessed it- kindness. One especially lovely lady who leads by example in this area is my mother-in-law. She, to me, is the epitome of a lady. She is also an avid tea drinker. There’s something to be said for tea drinkers, most of whom, possess the beverage personality which is polar opposite of the daily coffee consumer. I like to think there is something magical in that tea. Something that infuses one with grace, refinement, warmth, wisdom… kindness. Tea. Lovely. Dain-”tea”.

Now don’t get me wrong, I still love the roasted bean as much as the next gal. Heck, it’s the wind in my whirling dervish sails. It’s the mania in my tasmania devil dance. Tis the jitter een my gzeeterbug! But gosh, it certainly is a far cry from a soothing beverage… Let’s face it, you’d be hard pressed to find a brazen Brit or a fastidious fair isle girl cooing “coffee time” in the late afternoon. Nay. Tis tea time! Imagine a cup of warm, delicious tea as a cup of kindness. Drink this kindness and let it permeate every whisper of your body, mind, spirit. Let it stream within – until it finds your inner kindness and the two meld together… like a river flowing into an ocean. Let it melt away anger, resentment, defensiveness.

Indulge in a cup of kindness and reflect on the sage words of our elders. I am a firm believer that a nap, a hug, and a cup of kindness cure all things. Try it. It really does work!