MY HEART
Knowledge absorbed by the mind
is fickle. Sometimes it stays,
other times it fades. Knowledge
that descends from the mind,
down into the heart, remains
forever. It takes root and
changes lives.
Heart knowledge doesn't have to
be earth shattering to be
profound. A simple change in
perception - seeing something
through the eyes of the heart
instead of the eyes of the mind
- can alter the way you look at
yourself, look at others or look
at the world in general.
The grandest and the simplest of
my life's lessons have come from
the heart.
My heart taught me that a
cemetery is only a scary place
until someone you love is laid
to rest. It then becomes a place
of quiet tasks - grass clippings
brushed from a headstone,
flowers arranged and rearranged.
It becomes a place where you
leave the world at the gates and
devote time to tender memories.
My heart taught me that the
lifeblood of my country isn't
the rights and freedoms I enjoy.
It is the heart I see in the
weeping eyes of our Veterans on
Remembrance Day. It is the cost
exacted from their souls for
love of the land I am privileged
to call home.
My heart taught me that every
generation has its heroes. They
aren't found on the television
or movie screen, on the radio or
in major sports. Heroes are
busy, away from the limelight,
doing what heroes do best -
putting others before
themselves. From the major
cities and quiet hamlets in the
industrialized world, to the
most desolate and destitute
places on earth, there are
heroes to be found. All we have
to do - to find them - is stop
looking in the wrong places.
My heart taught me that
loneliness has nothing to do
with being by myself and
everything to do with filling a
God-shaped hole in the center of
my being. Some of my loneliest
experiences have been in the
presence of other people.
My heart taught me that puppy
kisses and hugs from small
children can heal a whole lot of
hurt.
My heart taught me that I catch
on 'real quick' and suddenly
'get it', when a lesson I've
refused to learn is repeated in
the lives of my children.
My heart taught me to stop
hatred, fear, disrespect and
prejudice at the front door of
my home. I can't stop all the
ugliness in the world, but I can
create a safe haven for the
hearts and souls of my family by
refusing the ugliness entrance
into my home.
My heart taught me that trying
to change people is best left in
God's hands. They will fall into
every pothole they refuse to go
around and hit every wall they
willingly run toward, regardless
of how much I want to save them
from suffering through the
consequences of their actions. I
can help pick up their broken
pieces in the aftermath, but God
can use their self-inflicted
pain to help them make better
choices in the future.
My heart taught me that my own
personal happiness is my own
personal responsibility. Putting
that responsibility on someone
else's shoulders is unfair. The
burden is heavy. It's also
unrealistic. No one was put on
earth for the sole purpose of
making me happy.
My heart taught me that
compassion isn't a gift I can
give to someone else's heart. It
is a gift of spirit I can only
grow in my own heart. I can
plant seeds, but I can't make
someone care about the hungry,
the lonely or the oppressed
people in the world around them.
My efforts only make them
pretend to care - when I'm
around them.
My heart taught me that walking
out the church door is the
holiest moment of a Sunday
morning service. Either I take
the message with me and make it
part of my life, or I leave it
in the sanctuary, tucked away
till the following Sunday
morning.
My heart taught me that
time-worn advice doesn't always
wear out. The old adage to
remember the sun when it's
raining and remember the rain
when the sun is shining,
contains more wisdom than many
modern day theories and
philosophies.
My heart taught me that missing
someone is a very real ache. It
comes from a place where another
heart has touched my own and
left a permanent imprint.
My heart taught me that birth
really is a miracle. A new baby,
fresh from heaven, is a new
chance, for a new heart, to
bring new light into this old
world.
Hidden heartbeats hold threads
of wisdom that forever lie
inside of me - and forever lie
inside of you.
