Courtesy is contagious and it begins with you!
Can you imagine if we all adopted this rule how awesome this world would be? I mean think about it, if you are nice to someone, that makes the person you are nice to feel good, therefore that puts them in a nice mood and the next person they encounter, will be treated nicely because its a domino effect!
I was on the train trying to study some statistics (God Help me!) and I overheard over my walkman playing... wait, did I just type WALKMAN???? GREAT! I just gave away my age! anyway, I overheard over my music playing, the announcement on the number 2 train that if you see someone who is elderly, handicapped or pregnant, to please give up your seat, to please be courteous, because courtesy is contagious and it begins with me! YES IT DOES!
The first thought that came to my mind after the announcement, was the fact that I couldn't even believe this is an announcement that needs to be made, but I understand Social Psychology, so I get why they do it, still, isn't it something so obvious that people should automatically know this? I just don't understand some people some times! and then it dawned on me, a moment of clarity!
It isn't that people aren't naturally kind human beings, it isn't that we don't know in our very beings that we should be kind to others, it's just that most of the time, if not ALL of the time, people are in their heads, they are thinking about last night, yesterday afternoon, five years ago, a year from now, two hours from now and in the mist of all these thoughts, they are lost in never never land, the land called mind, my mind, and if I'm (in my head) as my practical philosophy teacher Mary would often say, then we can't be in this moment, this one while I'm writing this post sitting on the 2 train on my way to class, or this moment now when you are reading this post! HELLO!!! YOU! Yes YOU! READING! HI! (Insert smile) jeez! I nearly lost you there for a moment, please do come back to this present moment, feel my love!
After those initial thoughts came to my mind, I also remembered two specific events that happened to me while I was pregnant with my third child, little Ms. Jazzy! One day, I was so exhausted (or maybe it was with my second child? Hmmm??) ok whichever child! But anyway, my feet were swollen and I was as huge as a cow! like FAT! wait... I just remembered it was with my second child (shaggy! he has long hair like Shaggy from Scooby Doo) so I'm standing inside the train, by the door, feeling the throbbing of my swollen feet, and this big huge stomach in front of me, and as people begin to enter the train I am pushed into the middle of the train by the crowd, so, I end up standing in front of a row of people that are all sitting down. I end up in front of this guy and my stomach was literally about to poke him in the eye and neither he nor anyone else sitting at these seats, offered me their seat! NO ONE! IT WAS CRAZY! I remember that the guy was looking straight ahead, it wasn't like he was reading or anything, he was looking around, finally, I couldn't take it anymore and I had to get his attention and ask for his seat, so he looks up at me looking a little embarrassed and stands up and gives me the seat.
Back then when this happened, I remember being pissed off! How DARE they be so rude to a woman with child! and I know that some would say, I didn't tell you to get pregnant how is that my problem? I have literally heard comments such as those, but I'm not talking about those few people that are just plain bitter, I'm talking about the people who are caring, the bulk of the human population, the bulk of New Yorkers that really do care. In my opinion, it isn't so much that people don't care, I refuse to believe that, I honestly believe that we are ALL just constantly in our heads, half the time we walk around like robots, like zombies and this makes me so sad! and I reference NY but when I went back home to Colombia, I saw the same thing.
Another time, while also pregnant and this time I'm positive it was with my princess, I was walking out of a bank and tripped and fell! I fell on my side, because I lost my balance, I had a HUGE belly! so there I was on the floor about to cry, and no one noticed, like literally I had to call to a man walking by to help me up! NO ONE noticed! I remember I was pregnant with little Jazzy, because after someone helped me up, I was in such disbelief of what had just happened, that I started crying and sent Benjamin Nunez (remember him? http://www.jazzy-jazzysjournal.blogspot.com/2010/12/omg-my-first-blog-entry.html) a message telling him what had just happened! he couldn't believe it either. As a side note, I also remember him saying, I can't believe that happened and to a cute pregnant lady at that! (Oh Benjamin! how I miss you so! God I loved him so much!).
Now, as I sit here on this train writing this post, I feel so sad that so many of us walk around in another world, a world called our heads, if you could wake up from that world and come into this one, like what I am trying to do every single day of my life, you will uncover so many amazing things, that I guarantee, you will never want to go back to Never Never Land... Our Minds! Try it! It's Amazing! At least it is for me, whenever I remember to come back to this moment I do so, and I always see beautiful amazing things.... Because this moment, is the only one that counts!
I just thought of a movie scene.....
Socrates: Where are you?
Dan Millman: Here.
Socrates: What time is it?
Dan Millman: Now.
Socrates: What are you?
Dan Millman: This moment.
Peaceful Warrior..............
Can you imagine if we all adopted this rule how awesome this world would be? I mean think about it, if you are nice to someone, that makes the person you are nice to feel good, therefore that puts them in a nice mood and the next person they encounter, will be treated nicely because its a domino effect!
I was on the train trying to study some statistics (God Help me!) and I overheard over my walkman playing... wait, did I just type WALKMAN???? GREAT! I just gave away my age! anyway, I overheard over my music playing, the announcement on the number 2 train that if you see someone who is elderly, handicapped or pregnant, to please give up your seat, to please be courteous, because courtesy is contagious and it begins with me! YES IT DOES!
The first thought that came to my mind after the announcement, was the fact that I couldn't even believe this is an announcement that needs to be made, but I understand Social Psychology, so I get why they do it, still, isn't it something so obvious that people should automatically know this? I just don't understand some people some times! and then it dawned on me, a moment of clarity!
It isn't that people aren't naturally kind human beings, it isn't that we don't know in our very beings that we should be kind to others, it's just that most of the time, if not ALL of the time, people are in their heads, they are thinking about last night, yesterday afternoon, five years ago, a year from now, two hours from now and in the mist of all these thoughts, they are lost in never never land, the land called mind, my mind, and if I'm (in my head) as my practical philosophy teacher Mary would often say, then we can't be in this moment, this one while I'm writing this post sitting on the 2 train on my way to class, or this moment now when you are reading this post! HELLO!!! YOU! Yes YOU! READING! HI! (Insert smile) jeez! I nearly lost you there for a moment, please do come back to this present moment, feel my love!
After those initial thoughts came to my mind, I also remembered two specific events that happened to me while I was pregnant with my third child, little Ms. Jazzy! One day, I was so exhausted (or maybe it was with my second child? Hmmm??) ok whichever child! But anyway, my feet were swollen and I was as huge as a cow! like FAT! wait... I just remembered it was with my second child (shaggy! he has long hair like Shaggy from Scooby Doo) so I'm standing inside the train, by the door, feeling the throbbing of my swollen feet, and this big huge stomach in front of me, and as people begin to enter the train I am pushed into the middle of the train by the crowd, so, I end up standing in front of a row of people that are all sitting down. I end up in front of this guy and my stomach was literally about to poke him in the eye and neither he nor anyone else sitting at these seats, offered me their seat! NO ONE! IT WAS CRAZY! I remember that the guy was looking straight ahead, it wasn't like he was reading or anything, he was looking around, finally, I couldn't take it anymore and I had to get his attention and ask for his seat, so he looks up at me looking a little embarrassed and stands up and gives me the seat.
Back then when this happened, I remember being pissed off! How DARE they be so rude to a woman with child! and I know that some would say, I didn't tell you to get pregnant how is that my problem? I have literally heard comments such as those, but I'm not talking about those few people that are just plain bitter, I'm talking about the people who are caring, the bulk of the human population, the bulk of New Yorkers that really do care. In my opinion, it isn't so much that people don't care, I refuse to believe that, I honestly believe that we are ALL just constantly in our heads, half the time we walk around like robots, like zombies and this makes me so sad! and I reference NY but when I went back home to Colombia, I saw the same thing.
Another time, while also pregnant and this time I'm positive it was with my princess, I was walking out of a bank and tripped and fell! I fell on my side, because I lost my balance, I had a HUGE belly! so there I was on the floor about to cry, and no one noticed, like literally I had to call to a man walking by to help me up! NO ONE noticed! I remember I was pregnant with little Jazzy, because after someone helped me up, I was in such disbelief of what had just happened, that I started crying and sent Benjamin Nunez (remember him? http://www.jazzy-jazzysjournal.blogspot.com/2010/12/omg-my-first-blog-entry.html) a message telling him what had just happened! he couldn't believe it either. As a side note, I also remember him saying, I can't believe that happened and to a cute pregnant lady at that! (Oh Benjamin! how I miss you so! God I loved him so much!).
Now, as I sit here on this train writing this post, I feel so sad that so many of us walk around in another world, a world called our heads, if you could wake up from that world and come into this one, like what I am trying to do every single day of my life, you will uncover so many amazing things, that I guarantee, you will never want to go back to Never Never Land... Our Minds! Try it! It's Amazing! At least it is for me, whenever I remember to come back to this moment I do so, and I always see beautiful amazing things.... Because this moment, is the only one that counts!
I just thought of a movie scene.....
Socrates: Where are you?
Dan Millman: Here.
Socrates: What time is it?
Dan Millman: Now.
Socrates: What are you?
Dan Millman: This moment.
Peaceful Warrior..............
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