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Inspired by Life Banner
What's on my mind

 

Kindness

Recently I had an opportunity to experience the kindness of strangers in an unexpected way. I was returning home to the USA and my plane experienced an electrical failure. Luckily this was discovered before we left the ground, so we deboarded the plane and proceeded to wait for further details. What happened over the next 12 hours of waiting ended up teaching me much about the love, warmth and natural goodness of humanity. As the minutes stretched into hours I began to strike up conversations with many of my fellow travelers. I have to say, I met the loveliest people during those hours. We talked about our travel plans, shared pictures of our vacations and discussed our views on an endless variety of topics. I encountered so many wonderful people that it ended up feeling like a blessing instead of an inconvenience to my travel plans.

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Inspired by Nature

I have been spending a lot of time working in my garden this summer. There is always something to water, weed or deadhead and so I spend several hours each day attending to these tasks. This year I was particularly struck by the number of big beautiful bumblebees throughout my garden. During one encounter there were nearly two dozen of them nestled into the tops of my coneflowers as I worked side by side with them – me tending to my tasks as they tended to theirs. Bee on flowerI started thinking about the harmony in allowing nature, insects and animals to exist together in a way where we can celebrate the contribution they are each here to make. This shift in perspective has caused me to see the beauty in all aspects of my garden. The idea of eradicating certain bugs on my flowers or launching a full scale assault on the weeds is no longer a viable option for me. When left to its own infinite intelligence, nature has a way of balancing the scales and my interference is not only unnecessary but often ill-conceived. Seeing these bumblebees brought all of this to mind. It was a great reminder to me that celebrating the contribution, no matter how seemingly small, of all sentient beings is more important than directing and streamlining things to look or be a certain way. I think it is a wonderful way to create a more peaceful, collaborative and beautiful world for all of us to share in harmoniously.
 

Inspired by the Word
I love books, and I must say, the only thing I like better than sitting down to read something inspiring is the joy that comes from sharing and discussing an amazing book! What fun is it to read something life changing if you don’t share it with others and see if they feel the power of it resonate with them as well? My selection for this month is:
 
The Sun Does Shine
by Anthony Ray Hinton

The Sun Does Shine Anthony Ray Hinton has a thing or two to teach all of us about surrendering to the moment and staying present to the opportunities for love and connection all around us. Spending 30 years on death row for a crime you did not commit could turn anyone into a bitter and resentful person. But this was not the case for Ray Hinton. His story is one of faith, resilience and triumph that will inspire you, sadden you and hopefully encourage you to see the possibilities for love and joy in the direst of circumstances. His story will take you to places in your mind and heart that are uncomfortable but necessary. Regardless of your position on capital punishment, Anthony Ray Hinton’s story is paramount to be shared and understood - because one thing we can all agree on is that innocent people should not be on death row.

Throughout reading this book I was rendered speechless by the injustice, yet I also felt my heart open and expand by the way he was able to make a life for himself on death row that had meaning. He was able to inspire both other inmates and guards. He found a way to be of service and create friendship in the most dismal situation. In Hinton’s words, “Death row taught me that no matter where we are we can still love and help each other…and if we can teach people to hate we should be able to teach them to love.” His ability to find forgiveness while fighting for three decades against a system stacked against him was awe-inspiring. I am certain his time enduring this was not in vain and that his sharing of this unique and gripping story will touch the hearts and minds of millions who are unaware of the desperate need for change. My pick this month is not meant to be a political statement, but a call to open our hearts to care about the injustice perpetrated on those that have the least resources to defend themselves. A topic and subject matter that may make us want to turn away but should matter to us all.

 

Inspirational Quote

The power of forgiveness and our ability to choose love over hate is always available to us. Regardless of the circumstance, no one can take the right to choose away from us. It is always and only up to us. I think this quote from Anthony Ray Hinton speaking about his wrongful conviction and how he felt after being released from death row speaks to this most important choice.

“I chose to forgive. I chose to stay vigilant to any signs of anger or hate in my heart. They took thirty years of my life. If I couldn’t forgive, if I couldn’t feel joy, that would be like giving them the rest of my life. The rest of my life is mine. Alabama took thirty years. That was enough.”

- Anthony Ray Hinton
 

Until next time, stay inspired!
 
Jennifer Jozwiak
Copyright © 2018 Jennifer Jozwiak, All rights reserved.


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