What if humanity could turn on a dime, could wake up one fine day and say to ourselves, let’s change it all, now, let’s bring climate chaos to a standstill and in so doing, change everything, everywhere, we would put our sights on well being for all, and we could do it, be it, now, just by waking up and saying let’s do it together, you and me, here and now, let’s create a new world of enough for each one of us, we could do that, i know we could and we should, it would be so good we would laugh out loud, we would sigh, we would be so happy, you and me, and everyone else as well, it would be swell. okay, on the count of three, let’s wake up and do it, one, two, three . . .

What if the purpose of human society is to relieve suffering and create happiness for all rather than to make a few people wealthy and powerful? We can do this.

Politics is about morality: what does the community need, what is the right thing to do, what is just, what is kind, what is it to love, what is true, what is it to care for those in need, what is needed to sustain life on Earth.

The role of government in a democracy is to protect the constitutional rights of citizens in worship, speech, assembly and lifestyle, to maintain safe standards in the quality of food, and medications, to protect citizens from foreign interventions, to protect the voting rights of every citizen, to provide for the general welfare of citizens in infrastructure, education, healthcare and safety nets for the elderly and the poor, to protect the natural environment including water, air, soil, plants and animals, to represent the views and wishes of citizens in formulating government policies and programs, to protect citizens from predatory corporations, to stimulate and safeguard the economy with wise fiscal policies and to provide ethical leadership.

A few years ago, I realized that we are not living in dark times but shadow times. Our shadows are appearing because there is so much light. Now we can address them clearly: misogyny, racism, intolerance, nationalism, greed, fear, narcissism and others.

Harmful behavior arises from mental confusion. Mental confusion arises from negative emotions such as greed, pride, fear, anger and hatred. Negative emotions arise from the delusion of a separate, permanent self.

We should not hate the haters (they are suffering from fear, anger, pride or greed) but overwhelm them with kind actions toward all beings everywhere, while restraining the haters from harming others.

Love conquers all things - all beliefs, all behaviors, all cultures, all systems. Translation: I can love you whatever your beliefs, behaviors, cultures, and systems. And what is love? To acknowledge, respect, honor, care for, understand, learn from, relieve your and my suffering, and enable you to be the best that you can be.

The brilliant billionaire inventor Steve Jobs was only 56 when he died of cancer. Yes, billionaires all die. They are like you and me in terms of suffering, sickness, old age, and death. But, sometimes their empathy dies first and greed takes over like a sickness. For example, the Walton family's wealth has increased by 9,000% since 1982, and their Walmart employees have to get food stamps to live paid for by taxpayers like you and me. We can change the rigged economy if we elect representatives who care about the wellbeing of the 99%.

Our daily choices: greed or generosity? tolerance or fear? truth or lies? violence or peace? kindness or hatred? equality or privilege? justice or abuse? destruction or protection? dialogue or monologue? Let’s choose generosity, tolerance, truth, peace, kindness, equality, justice, protection, and dialogue.

From my book A Compassionate Civilization:

Everything that is, everything we are and everything we have is a gift. Gratitude is, therefore, the most natural emotion and response we can have as a human being. The universe itself is a mysterious gift including our nearby star which shares its light and warmth freely, generously. Gratitude is the natural response.

Planet Earth herself is a gift, giving life-giving gifts of water, air, soil, plants, animals and humans freely, generously. Gratitude is the natural response. The human community, including the family into which we are born is a gift provided freely, generously. Gratitude is the natural response.

Our body-mind is a gift given freely, generously. Gratitude is the natural response. Our language, culture and religion are gifts given freely, generously. Gratitude is the natural response. Other people grow crops and provide the food that sustains us. Gratitude to farmers, truckers and grocery store workers.

Other people build the houses that shelter us. Gratitude to architects, contractors and construction workers. Other people provide the education that nurtures our minds. Gratitude to curriculum developers, teachers and administrators.

Other people provide the clothes that protect us. Gratitude to clothing designers, seamstresses and store workers. And so it goes. We are each enabled to live our lives through the gifts given generously by our fellow and sister human beings. For this we are grateful.

We each share our gifts with others. The whole human family is sustained through the sharing of gifts. For this we are grateful. Some people receive more gifts than others. Others give more gifts than others. May we each be overwhelmed by generosity and gratitude!

As for me, I am grateful for gratitude itself.

My key insights from a retreat with Larry Ward and Peggy Rowe Ward: Become more conscious of resources for mindfulness; do what you want/need to do with your remaining energy; don’t let life catch you with your work undone; end life satisfied with loved ones and your conscience; connect with other peoples’ humanity; feel your experience - it is not just an idea or a word; experience your aliveness; practice is the key; pay attention to what activates negative potentialities; nourish wholesome potentialities; be a dragon who wakes up to rescue everyone. Deep gratitude to our teachers.

May you and all beings realize peace, happiness, understanding, and compassion!

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