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What I’ve Learned from Dumpster Kids, a Buddhist Monk, and Other Wise Teachers
| Guest post by: Keith Ferrazzi |
Article Overview: Lesson #1: Choose your family wisely. I saw this listed in a Bangkok gym as tip number ten to “live a long life,” but it struck me as particularly poignant as I was thinking about my trip during my last run on the beach in Thailand before going back to LA.
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Free Download - What I’ve Learned from Dumpster Kids, a Buddhist Monk, and Other Wise Teachers By Keith Ferrazzi |
What I’ve Learned from Dumpster Kids, a Buddhist Monk, and Other Wise Teachers
This is a five-part series sharing lessons in joy, success,
and even fidelity, that I brought back with me from a 2-week service
trip to Thailand and Cambodia at the close of 2010. Here are parts one and two. Head to the blog every day this week for the next three parts.-KF
Lesson #1: Choose your family wisely.
Lesson #1: Choose your family wisely.
I saw this listed in a Bangkok gym as tip number ten to “live a
long life,” but it struck me as particularly poignant as I was thinking
about my trip during my last run on the beach in Thailand before going
back to LA.
Let me start with the story of a brother and sister, whom Big Task
Foundation now sponsors. They were living in a trash dump, literally,
with a prostitute mother and a drunk father who beat her up a lot – she
drank a lot too. During the day, they wandered the streets and at
night slept on the trash among the rats. Then at the young ages of 5
and 6 they stumbled upon the Asia Center Foundation
(AsiaCenterFoundation.org) and took refuge there, among people who
cared about them, fed them, and got them into school and on the path to
college.
In other words, they chose to find a family that gave them what
they needed. The little boy, who wants to be a lawyer, still interacts
with his mom although he lives at the safe house; the sister doesn't
want to even visit because she’s afraid of being recruited to her
mother's profession. They’ve been through a lot, but they’re happy.
Even as children, they chose wisely. We should all do the same –
and it applies to our professional lives. To be happy, you have to seek
out the right partners, and be proactive about it. Frustrated by your
work environment? Then find the accountability buddy who won’t let you
fail. Find or develop the team that cares so deeply about each other's
success that they will out-perform better-resourced, even smarter teams
because they have the passion. Find the loving support that will give
you the encouragement you need to see the potential and not the
limitations. Why should you let anyone stand in your way of success
when there are people out there who can give you all you need. Find
them!
Lesson #2: Make every day a meditation by walking slowly, listening deeply, and counting breaths, not sheep.
Lesson #2: Make every day a meditation by walking slowly, listening deeply, and counting breaths, not sheep.
On New Years Day, all the orphanages were closed to us so I wanted
to go to a temple, to sit among the majesty of hundreds or thousands of
years of spirituality and be guided through a beautiful reflective
experience looking toward 2011. As it turns out in Thailand it’s a
tradition to do just that on the last day of the year. Smart folk.
Our meditation at the temple was lead by Monk Thomas – another
wise one who chose his own family. He was born of an English father and
a Thai mother, not easy for a child in Thailand. Over time and through
deep exploration of what was important to him, Thomas chose to make a
new family in a life of devotion.
I know about and have experienced the benefits of meditation but
have nevertheless rarely found the time to practice it daily. When we
arrived that day, we were ushered to the fluorescent-lit storage area
with old steel desks that the temple called their office. We were told
the temple was full but we would do our meditation here. (Here?
Really? With all the cool flashy gold stuff upstairs we were going to
sit here?) And then I saw the spiders. Many spiders. (Why didn't I
just stay back at the hotel pool?) We were instructed to clear some
boxes for a pathway of about ten feet and the instruction began.
First, listening meditation. As I sat on a steel chair, Monk
Thomas started into his standard speech about what we would learn. But
then he interrupted himself. "You know, we can even meditate while we
listen,” he said pointedly. “Perhaps you find yourself disappointed by
our scenery, perhaps a little angry that you sat in traffic for an hour
to get here, and maybe you are thinking that you are missing EVERYTHING
upstairs, the beautiful gold reclining Buddha that you came to see...."
I was beginning to think maybe the temple was totally empty and
Thomas had put us with the spiders as a lesson. I took the hint. I
started to look at him and listen, deeply. I recognized that these
thoughts he got me to cop to were not only distractions but
distractions I was actively choosing. I needed to let them float by and
focus only on him. I got myself to stop thinking about what I would say
if he were to stop. Then I thought about how many times I’ve cut off
other people's sentences and completed them myself. And what it would
be like to sit and really listen to someone – and how it would feel to
them to know they were being truly heard and respected. What it would
do for my own understanding of their point of view and what it would do
for my blood pressure! If this was meditation, I could do it. I could
listen. Every day.
His point made, Thomas moved on. "How about sleeping?" Now he had
my attention. I don't get much sleep but I do sleep every day. Monk
Thomas suggested that as we lie down to go to bed, we shouldn’t shift
around. Don't focus on the day or tomorrow. Don't count sheep. Just
lie still and observe your breath. If you have a thought, observe it,
then refocus on your breath.
Finally when the time came for us to meditate we didn't sit as I
had thought one did. Instead we were instructed in the art of walking
meditation. We were to walk slowly, deliberately, and attentively while
saying a simple mantra, "I am walking, I am walking, I am walking."
When we ran out of space, we were to say, "I am standing, I am
standing, I am standing," and "I am turning, I am turning, I am
turning." Then "I am wanting to walk, I am wanting to walk, I am
wanting to walk." And again, "I am walking, I am walking, I am
walking."
In walking – even to the bathroom – we can practice being present
in our bodies, our actions. I can indeed meditate every day, and so can
you for greater peace of mind, health, and focus for prosperity and
joy.
Warmest,
Warmest,
Keith
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About the Author: Keith Ferrazzi RSS for Keith's articles - Visit Keith's website Click here to visit Keith's website   Watch Me Tell One of the Best Stories in Never Eat Alone Some are naturals but everyone can get better Understand How Work Stress Can Affect Your Body Were Not Virtual Were Human Today Act Like It Tip of the week Its never too early to start connecting |
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