Graduation
Have your eye on the goal, but then let it all go
For everything changes, as you will come to know
Every plan you make, and every seed you sow
Is impermanent, nothing is ever yours to own
Once you realize this, oh you will see the truth
That you never were the planter of your own fruits,
But accept these gifts even if you don’t know from who
And kindly pay it forward to those behind you
Cuz ultimately, what we take will always disappear
But what we give will live on for years
So keep giving, of your stuff and yourself
Until your ego, has completely melted
Be wary of the impact that you wanna make
Instead make sure you are impacted each day
Have your eye on the sky, but still see the ants
For the small things are the foundation of all that will last
We move on
As time passes by
Let’s just hope we move from
Darkness to light
When we reach the top
And we look back, I
Hope you cry,
Filled with tears of joy, satisfied
Be careful not to accumulate too many things
Because you may just end up with a pot full of greed
And doing, likewise can also be deceiving
So I encourage you all to practice just being
Be still, be happy, be loving, be kind
Be humble, be magical, be aware, but be blind
Don’t judge, see the good in each and every soul
Use your mind when needed, but follow your heart even more
Also, don’t forget to thank God, every time you fail,
Cuz your journey from failure, will be your legacy and tale
Remember to feed birds, hug trees and bow to the sun
Until you and Mother Nature are one
The last thing, is to be grateful for all of your gifts
For gratitude and suffering cannot co-exist
When you reach this space, every moment will be bliss
And this graduating class, will mark your success
Happy, free, confused and lonely, miserable and magical at the same time
Our capacity to love is a currency that just never runs out,
Consider the likes of Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Mother Theresa,
And may each of you tap into that generous ocean and discover everyday what it means to give,
In giving may you fully experience what it means to receive,
And as Martin Luther King Says, “Everyone can be great, because everyone can serve”
May you all find greatness in service to life,
May you all give, receive and never ever stop dancing. Thank you.
At the pinnacle of a dizzying career, young Indian-American rapper Nimesh "Nimo" Patel was haunted by an unshakeable sense of emptiness. In his mid-twenties, he abandoned the limelight. An inner voice nudged him to radically simplify his life and find his purpose in service to others. Moving to the Gandhi Ashram in India, he dedicated himself to the children in surrounding slums. After a 7-year musical hiatus -- 5 of which were spent living with and learning from slum communities -- something inside nudged him to write music again. But, this time, in a different spirit. One that would reflect the heart of humanity. Over the past 9 months, Nimo has released a labor-of-love album, co-produced two music videos on kindness and gratitude, and embarked on a music pilgrimage -- all in the spirit of finding, practicing, and sharing small acts with great love. Reading above are the lyrics one of his songs -- Graduation.
SEED QUESTIONS FOR REFLECTION: How do you relate to the notion that "gratitude and suffering cannot co-exist?" Can you share a personal experience of a time when you realized that "love is a currency that never runs out?" How do we practice having an eye on the sky while still seeing the ants?
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6 Past Reflections
On Mar 9, 2020 Gabriel Evangelista wrote :
It's so nice to find this reading here.
I heard about Nimo's music for the first time in an Awakin Circle in Oakland, back in 2018. His music has come with me ever since.
Last December, I graduated from university (Mexico) and I had the chance to write the graduation speech for my classmates. It was a nice surprise to find out that this song's ideas were the core of the message. It was all about gratitude, about how "... We never were the planter of your own fruits," and about not really owning our diplomas. It was a nice day. Many people cried :,)
It is wonderful to realize that the words were never really mine.
Deep gratitude for this wonderful space.
PS: Sorry if this wasn't related directly to the seed questions.
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On Apr 7, 2015 Elyse wrote :
I had begun a gratitude journal several months before my husband was diagnosed with a heart problem that would require him to have open heart surgery. The news was initially overwhelming since I was 6 months pregnant and our son was just three. That night when I left the hospital with my husband in their care I went home and in tears reached for my journal. It was then that instead of struggling to think of something to be grateful for, I was flooded with gratitude for the supports and blessings that surrounded me. Gratitude doesn't always come as easily but when I pause to reflect, I can always find it.
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On Apr 5, 2015 Thankful wrote :
This is truth!
Consumers, in time, become consumed. Givers (lovers), in time, are joined in/with/to Love.
One ("using") ultimately leads us to "death". The other (loving) grows us . . . to LIFE (graduation)!
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On Apr 3, 2015 david doane wrote :
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On Apr 3, 2015 Jagdish P Dave wrote :
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On Apr 3, 2015 Kristin Pedemonti wrote :
When we are grateful we are focusing on that energy and on those experiences in a new light, suffering then is not taking precendence. We are seeing the beauty around us, the love, the joy even in the sorrow. We are reminded of all that is working well even in the midst of what is not. Gratitude helps re-frame everything; we are sick, we are reminded of the systems that continue to work in our bodies; whether it's our heart pumping or our lungs breathing. When we are in pain, we are reminded of all the times we were fortunate to not be in pain.
Love is a currency that never runs out; the more you give, the more you receive in return; but that is not why one shares love. You can blow out a candle, but you cannot blow out a fire: love is the same; the more love there is, the harder it is to extinguish it.
How do we practice eye on sky & see the ants: see the beauty in both and realize it is all the small things that add up to the big. <3