Food for Thought: Paulo Coelho

"Life has many ways of testing a person's will, either by having nothing happen at all or by having everything happen all at once." 

~Paul Coelho

Food for Thought: Joss Whedon

Today I am stealing my food for thought quote from my good friend Allie Safran and her wonderful blog Beauty and the Feast. I fell in love with the quote after reading it and just had to share it with you all.

"Passion, it lies in all of us, sleeping...waiting...and though unwanted...it will stir...open its jaws and howl. It speaks to us...guides us...passion rules us all, and we obey. What other choice do we have? Passion is the source of our finest moments. The joy of love...the clarity of hatred...and the ecstasy of grief. It hurts sometimes more than we can hear. If we could live without passion maybe we'd know some kind of peace...but we would be hollow...empty rooms shuttered and dark. Without passion we'd be truly dead." 

~Joss Whedon 

Be Curious

"Blessed are the curious for they shall have adventures."

~Lovelle Drachman

Poetry: Don't Quit

A poem I found that is helping me get through all of my work:

When things go wrong as they sometimes will,
When the road you're trudging seems uphill,
When the funds are low and the debts are high,
And you want to smile, but you have to sigh,
When care is pressing you down a bit-
Rest if you must, but don't quit.

Life is strange with its twists and turns,
As every one of us sometimes learns,
And many a fellow turns about
When he might have won had he stuck it out.
Don't give up though the pace seems slow
You may succeed with another blow.

Often the goal is nearer than
It seems to a fair and faltering man,
Often the struggler has given up
When he might have captured the victor's cup,
And he learned too late when night came down,
How close he was to the golden crown.

Success is failure turned inside out-
The silver tint of the clouds of doubt,
And you never can tell how close you are,
It may be near when it seems afar,
So stick to the fight when you're hardest hit,-
It's when things seem worst that you mustn't quit.

~Author Unknown 

Food for Thought: Haida Indian Saying

"We do not inherit this land from our ancestors; we borrow it from our children."

Food for Thought: Albert Einstein

"A human is a part of this whole called by us the 'universe', a part limited in time and space. He experiences himself, his thoughts, and feelings as something separated from the rest, a kind of optical illusion of consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desire and to a portion for a few persons nearest to us. Our task must be to force ourselves to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole in its beauty."

~Albert Einstein 

Good Ol' Einstein and Churchill

I read somewhere that inspiration is like showers, it should be repeated often if you really want it to work. I myself am a huge believer in looking to influential people from the past and present for inspiration. I love find quotes from famous people that embody what I believe to be true. So without further adieu I give you two quotes I really love by Albert Einstein and Winston Churchill.

"We need an essentially new way of thinking if mankind is to survive. Men must radically change their attitudes toward each other and their views of the future. Force must no longer be an instrument of politics... Today, we do not have much time left; it is up to our generation to succeed in thinking differently. If we fail, the days of civilized humanity are numbered." 

-Albert Einstein

"We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give."

 -Winston Churchill

We need to change the paradigm we live in...We must no longer think only of ourselves, but of ourselves as part of something bigger...like a puzzle piece that has its specific part to play to make the bigger picture complete. Only when we learn to work together will we be able to truly make peace within ourselves and the world at large...So take Churchill's advice and try to make a life and not just a living. 

10 Rules for Being Human

I found this gem of knowledge back when I was still in high school, and I have gone back to it often to remind myself about what life is really all about. But in keeping with the belief that whenever we find something inspiring, real, or true we should share it with the one's we love...I thought I would share it with you all today.  I hope it helps you as much as it has helped me. 

1. You will receive a body. You may like it or hate it, but it's yours to keep for the duration of your life on Earth. 
2. You will be presented with lessons. You are enrolled in a full-time informal school called, "life."
3. There are no mistakes, only lessons. Growth is a process of experimentation, a series of trials, errors and occasional victories. The failed experiments are as much as a part of the process as the experiments that work.
4. Lessons are repeated until learned. Lessons will be repeated to you in various forms until you have learned them. When you have learned them, you can go on to the next lesson. 
5. Learning does not end. There is no part of life that does not contain less. If you are alive, there are still more lessons to be learned. 
6. "There" is no better than "here". When your "there" has become "here" you sill simply obtain another "there" that will look better to you than your present "here".
7. Others are only mirrors of you. You cannot love or hate something about another person unless it reflects something you love or hate about yourself. 
8. What you make of your life is up to you. You have all the tools and resources you need. What you do with them is up to you. 
9. Your answers lie inside of you. All you need to do is look, listen, and trust. 
10. You will forget all this at birth. 

By Dr. Cherie Carter-Scott

A Simple Reminder

Found this quote on Pinterest and it was to good not to share:

"Life's too short 

to be anything but happy. 

Kiss slowly, love deeply, 

forgive quickly, take chances, 

give everything, and leave 

with no regrets.

Forget the past with the 

exception 

of what you have

 learned from it, 

and remember

everything happens for a reason."

Yep...that about sums it up, I'd say.  

A Brilliant Man

My father is really a brilliant man (and yes Dad if you are reading this, I mean it!). There are multiple conversation I can remembering having with my father throughout my childhood, that always made me realize just how smart he was. 

He is a man who realize that happiness is not drawn from material things, but from the simple things already given to us by mother nature....

He doesn't want a lot in life just a plot of land near the water that he can call his own, and the chance to tromp through the woods really in search of the peace that comes from being outside than any deer or elk (though he would take that as a bonus), and maybe a new ski boat....haha

But there is one conversation that I had with my Dad a couple years ago that I always return to. It was while I was home working for the summer. My mom was away on business so my Dad and I decided to go to Outback Steakhouse for dinner (we are real classy like that...haha). 

During dinner, my Dad looked at me and said (something along the lines of)

 "You know Jill, the one thing I worry about with you is that you are going to let your education go to your head. You can't ever thing you are better than other people because you are more educated than them. You were just given a better opportunity then most. But who knows what anybody else could have accomplished with your same opportunities"

Truer words were never spoken by my Father. I revisit that conversation and the lesson I learned and am still learning from it often. Its a story I often tell my friends to. 

As people become more and more educated they often fall victim to wealth of their own knowledge... they can't remember not knowing what they know now, they don't think about how much time and effort it took for them to learn...some people even become pretentious, condescending, and most of all inpatient with those supposedly less educated then them. 

Honestly these are problems we all fall victim to at times, me included. Being less condescending and more patient is something I have been avidly working on ever since this conversation, and it is probably something I will continue to have to work on until the day I die. 

What we don't realize is that the world is full of hundreds of thousands of different types of knowledge and understanding...and each person has there own wealth of knowledge to share, their own lifetime of experience. 

Its funny cause now I always think about how little I know, and much more I want to learn, and life will teach me. 

I look to the people I am working with and see how innovative they are, they learn whatever skills they have to make a difference in the lives of the people we work with. Even the girls at DSK, some of them might cannot even read or write, but then can sew the pants off of me, and definitely know how to handle village life far better then me. 

So Thanks Dad! You taught me more then you will ever know! 

The message stuck, and now instead of thinking in a condescending manner, I am thinking about what  it is that I can learn from the world and the people around. What is it they have to teach me. 

My Beautiful Cohort

This past year I spent a majority of my working hours with the people pictured above. It is kind of crazy to think about how over half of them will no longer be there when I get back from this trip in October. All of the 12 month students finish the program in August, while the rest of us finish up in December. 

The end of the school year was such a whirlwind... with people just trying to survive finals while also preparing for their various internships and research projects all around the world. May of us really didn't get a chance to say goodbye. I didn't really get a chance to say bye. 

The people above were more then just my classmates this past year, they were my teachers, my supporters, and most importantly my inspiration. The amount of compassion, understanding, and drive the people above have for making a difference and helping those less fortunate then themselves is truly amazing. They made coming to class each day not only enjoyable but as educational as possible. I am truly going to miss their presence in my life, but I know that they are all doing wonderful things for the world...and I take them with me as I strive to do the same. I thank them all for their love and support...they will never know how much they meant to me, and how much I admire them all. 

Thank You Cohort of 2011-2012!

I love and miss you ALL!

Patience & Understanding

One of the things that I have come to realize this past year... is that I can be a bit of a control freak.

For those of you who know me really well, you are probably thinking "well yeah, you are just figuring that out now?"

But the truth is you can inherently know something about yourself your whole life, but the weight of that knowledge will have no affect until you verbalize it...until you truly acknowledge what that means about you or how you see and interact with the world around you. 

After high school I slowly began to realize that I had to let go of being a perfectionist because no person can, will, or should try to be perfect. And though I may still be a control freak and a perfectionist at times, I am honestly amazed and proud of how much I have mellowed out. Again I am sure my close friends are thinking you are still pretty intense which is definitely true, but progress has been made and I am not finished yet. 

I truly believe that life is about learning and progressing, and that as long as you are living then there is still more for you to do, see, experience, and learn. I have also come to realize that perspective and understand are everything. A positive attitude and a belief in one's self are all a person really needs to overcome any obstacle. I heard somewhere that God does not give you what you want but what you need, and that its up to us to realize that. 

Coming to India is exactly what I needed to help me continue to progress as an individual. Since being here I have really started to understand what it means to be patient... and how understanding why something is the way it is or why someone is the way they are... can immensely help the amount of patience you have. 

When we take the time to understand a person, a culture, or a situation, not only can we learn to appreciate it, but we can learn how to work with it. I may never be able to fully overcome my tendency to act as a control freak. But maybe with time and tons of patience and understanding, I will be able to start reshaping my intensity into pure passion and my perfectionism into drive and diligence. 

So my lesson today is to be patient and try to understand: that differences are good, that we grow more from things that seem difficult at first, and that the only thing you can really control is your own attitude. 

Traveling

Traveling is honestly one of my favorite things to do. I always tell people that traveling makes my heart sing. 

You honestly can learn so much about the world we live in and yourself when you travel. When you travel you come across individuals who remind you to have faith in humanity. You learn not just how things are different but how things are the same....How people are the same. Traveling can teach you how to enjoy another culture and how to appreciate your own. 

Already here I have found that:

...there is magic in smiling at strangers, when you don't know that right words

...in the wind and the way it can kiss away the heat

...how sharing a meal can lead to instant friendship

...how time can expand when you stop looking ahead and live in the moment

Despite any apprehensions I may have had before coming here, I was excited to come. I was ready for the challenge. I felt as though I needed something that would help me grow and prepare me for the next stage of my life. I knew I would find that growth here. I wanted an experience that would humble me, and remind me of what life is really all about...what is important.

I may have only been here a week but already I feel myself letting go of any fears I may have had. I feel myself learning how to let go and just live.

So if there is one piece of advice I can and will give to anyone and everyone...it is to travel. If you don't go, then you will never know about what magic this world really possesses. You will never know what you are truly made of and what matters the most to you. 

Life Changers

Receiving an education is important no matter where you are in the world. In the U.S. the current issue is both the costs of attending college, and in some parts of the country the quality of the public schools systems due to lack of adequate resources for teaching staff. I know personally being one of the thousands of individuals who has student loans, the cost of education is a really big concern... Especially when the job market isn't what it used to be, and getting a college degree is no longer the guaranteed career booster it used to be. 

While these issues are very important to us in the U.S., they pale in comparison to the overall lack of access to even basic primary education in the rest of the world. 18% of the world's population is currently illiterate, and according to UNESCO India still has the largest illiterate population in the world despite all of its recent development. Two thirds of all illiterate people are women. 

So why am I telling you all these things? Because here at DSK they offer girls and boys from the state of Gujarat the opportunity to take vocational classes...such as wood working, tailoring, computer skills, mechanics, among others. 

Currently there are 150 girls enrolled in tailoring and beautician classes. The classes run for three months and the cost for each of the girls is 3,000 Rupees which includes room and board. That is about $55. Upon completing the classes the girls are then given back 2,500 Rupees to help them start their own business. It really is an amazing program that has helped a lot of individuals change their lives for the better. The problem though is for some of the students here and other potential students 3,000 Rupees is really hard for them to come up with, and now the cost of the sewing machines they use is 8,000 Rupees, so they have to come up with an additional 5,500 Rupees to get started. That's only about another $100 in U.S... an amount that is less then most people's gas for the month. 

Education really is a powerful thing, it can help people change their lives, but unfortunately everything comes at a cost...and for some of these girls $150 or 8000 rupees is more then they can afford. 

Its crazy to realize that with just one year of my school's tuition and cost of attendance I could have sent over three hundred girls to school here, and then given them the extra cash they needed to start their own business after. 

Rebecca

My trip to get here took three flights and the better part of two days. I left San Diego on Wednesday June 20th at 10:30a.m. and arrived to Ahmedabad at 6:35a.m. on June 22nd.

 I met a woman named Rebecca from California, while I was waiting in the airport in Mumbai for my last flight. As one of the only other foreigners in sight we naturally gravitated towards each other. 

She turned out to be a missionary from the Baptist Church. She had started out working at an architecture firm in New York, when one day she decided she wasn't feeling fulfilled in her job any more, and she said God told her to come to India. 

After her first trip in 2009, where she worked with a missionary, Rebecca looked to God to find her true mission in India. After that first trip, Rebecca started working to get kids off the street and into school programs in Kolkata. Now with the support of her church and various prayer groups she has spent the majority of the last three years in India working to get kids into schools. When she is home she presents to her church and all the other organizations supporting her on the work she is doing here. 

Rebecca's commitment to her faith and her work was admirable. Despite an extreme fear of flying, and some uncomfortableness with the culture in Kolkata, Rebecca continues to come back year after year feeling as though this is what she is meant to do. 

Her dedication to the work she is doing, made me reexamine why I was making the trip to India myself. And though our motivations and methods for helping may have been different, our goals are the same, to help. 

I wish her luck in her endeavors, and thank her for the company as I waited for the last leg of my long trip. 

Reason for the Title and the Blog

Two days ago I arrived to India for the beginning of a four month research trip. While here I will be working with several different organizations. My internship for the next few months is with a wonderful NGO (Non Governmental Organization) called Navsarjan. (Don't worry I will go into extreme depth about the work they do later) The internship and research project I am currently involved with are requirements for the completion of my Master's in Peace and Justice Studies.

I am creating this blog both so that my family and friends can keep track of the work I am doing, and so that I may have a space to reflect on my experience here.

I decided to title this blog "Cultivating Compassion"because of the book I am currently reading, a book by His Holiness the Dalai Lama called Beyond Religion: Ethics for a Whole World. The book speaks of the difference between empathy and compassion. While "empathy is characterized by a kind of emotional resonance--feeling with the other person, compassion, in contrast, is not just sharing experience with others, but also wishing to see them relieved of their suffering." 

"Compassion means wanting to do something to relieve the hardships of others, and this desire to help, far from dragging us further into suffering ourselves, actually gives is energy and a sense of purpose and direction." 

This is what I am seeking to do with my time here. It is my hope that my work here will help relieve the  Dalit "Untoucables" of a little bit of their hardships, and will help me feel secure in the direction my studies and life have taken me thus far. I want my work to be filled with purpose, and for my own circle of concern to be broadened so that I may leave here one step closer to a sense of universal compassion. 

So for the next four months I will be working towards CULTIVATING COMPASSION.