Mercy

At the outset when I read these lines, my mind started working on it. Just as the word gives power to the one showing it and taking power away from the person receiving it - the very word MERCY like any other word that gives power and takes it away seemed very odd and uncomfortable. I am yet to meet a kind person who has said to me, I was merciful or I showed mercy on the poor thing..etc., Yet, it is a powerful word to reflect for sure. In our day to day activities, unbeknownst to us, we get presented with several situations that will call for us to show it - when no body is watching! What is natural to all human hearts is compassion and love. Mercy is a manifestation of those qualities. A personal story that comes to mind is when we were having lunch in the backyard and a kite dropped a lizard it had in its claws I suppose. It fell inches from my daughter. Shining blue scales and amazing creation was helpless and probably as hurt badly. No CPR if possible could probably have saved it. I took the position of an observer to see my compassionate offspring spring into action. In no time, she picked a large leaf, put the ailing lizard on it and moved it to a place where she could rest, not be found and maybe find something to nourish it. We saw it change positions for the next few hours and into the night. Options were many for my daughter, she could have taken the "yuck" route as she was eating her lunch, or just disposed it in the garbage assuming it was dead. however, to give it priority over her lunch and pay full attention with love and care to something that was at a point of no return - I felt was much more than mercy. It did stir something mellow in my heart and gave me a feeling of "All is well for the future, life will be good, kindness has a future." Meditation and self compassion practices help me practice mercy. My practices are all heart based and moves me from thinking to feeling and from feeling to being - being to becoming - becoming love, becoming compassion and kind.