Words of Wisdom

Next time your in a crowded bus, or subway or street take a look at the person next to you, or the person that just past you. Meditate for a moment about that person, and where they might have just come from, or where they're going. Now think about what kind of experiences that person might have had to go through to get to this moment in time, whether spiritual, emotional or physical. Now think about yourself, reflect on past moments, experiences and challenges that have molded you to the person you are today and how those experiences have allowed you to be in this present moment in time. We all have our stories and we all have had lives up to this point. Lives in which we have laughed, cried, fallen, succeeded and maybe even have loved, or been loved. We won't ever be able to get to know every person we see or gain knowledge from their lives. We cannot learn from everybody. We can however appreciate their lives and be aware of the people outside our immediate circle of friends and family. I find myself way to often absorbed into my whole world that I don't realize the possibly thousands of people passing in and out of my vision every single day. Just think about it; all those people have their own lives, maybe with experiences similar to your own, and possibly experiences you couldn't even imagine. Like escaping a war torn country with nothing but the clothes on your back, or meeting His Holiness the Dalai Lama, or travelling south Asia on a bike and so many more. These were all experiences I never thought about, but here I am, I've met the people who claim these stories as their own. It makes me wonder, what are my stories now and what will my stories be in the future?

Each person we encounter, whether for a few hours or many years has an equal opportunity to make a profound impression on our personal paradigm's. How are we to know which person will make a significant impact on our lives? The truth is we don't know, and we won't know until years into the future when we can look at our lives in hindsight and pick out the various names and faces of people. All we can do now is appreciate every person we meet, and possibly every person we don't. I heard somewhere that in the course of our lives we will meet an average of 10,000 people, only a couple hundred will be remembered. Who will those people be? What will they have contributed to your life? Was it positive or negative? What have you contributed or could contribute to their lives?