KindSpring Weekly: Spotlight On Kindness: Being An Ally Posted by Ameeta Martin, Sep 25 2018 Latest issue of 'KindSpring Weekly' newsletter is themed Spotlight On Kindness: Being An Ally. Our inspiring featured video today takes us to a special 4th grade classroom where a unique teacher invites the kids to answer the question of "when and why you would choose to step in" to help someone? A look inside this classroom shows that with the right tools, and a lot of space for self-expression, our world's younger generation promises much hope as stewards of humanity. - Ameeta

Mish Featured On Love Podcast :) Posted by Bradley Stoll, Sep 25 2018 Not sure if you heard, but our beloved Mish was featured on a "Love Podcast". Take a listen, to hear her share her love of KindSpring, and small acts of kindness. Go Mish! :)

Nuggets From Phuoc Le's Call Posted by Pavi Mehta, Sep 22 2018 This Saturday, we had the privilege of hosting Awakin Call with Phuoc Le. Dr. Phuoc Le is an advocate for equitable healthcare worldwide. He is a physician and co-founder of the HEAL (Health, Equity, Action, and Leadership) Initiative, which trains front-line health professionals to build a community dedicated to serving the underserved. With a name meaning “blessing” or “good fortune” in both Vietnamese and Chinese, Phuoc was born in Vietnam at the end of the war and fled at age 5 with his family by boat -- narrowly escaping death at sea. Now a highly educated and trained physician, Phuoc has worked with Dr. Paul Farmer and Partners in Health to provide healthcare to the world's poor in their homes and communities, including in Africa and post-earthquake Haiti. “For the vast majority of people, it doesn’t turn out the way it did for me,” he says. “As much as I’ve been ... Read Full Story

Making Ordinary Extraordinary With Consistency & Care. Posted by Jyoti , Sep 21 2018 This week's Awakin reading was about Love. An ordinary home in Santa Clara is where I had the good fortune to attend the Awakin circle. There are too many people and too many small acts that convert this ordinary home to the extraordinary Kindness Temple for anyone to describe it all but a couple of things that make magic happen are consistency and care. This home has welcomed complete strangers every Wednesday, to come join the Awakin circle, for twenty one years. This consistency is remarkable, if not unparalleled. No excuses and no reason is great enough to break the weekly hosting practice. Earlier this year, as I presented the ServiceSpace story at a conference, Barry Schwartz in the audience confessed that although he was really pessimistic, hearing about the 21 years of unbroken Awakin circles had given him reason to be hopeful. Not many can sustain their efforts this long. Food ... Read Full Story

A Poignant Comment Received This Morning ... Posted by Yoo-Mi Lee, Sep 18 2018 A poignant comment received this morning on The Magic Mirror of Betty Peck, which was featured as today's DailyGood: When I look in a mirror, I don't see something wonderful. However, I do know the power of seeking and moving towards one's Values. I have been having trouble identifying those Values in my life in order to find direction. This video gave me 3 Values to pursue: Goodness, Oneness and Diversity. I know that if I move that direction, I will be able to see magic in the mirror again.

KindSpring Weekly: Spotlight On Kindness: Celebrating Posted by Ameeta Martin, Sep 18 2018 Latest issue of 'KindSpring Weekly' newsletter is themed Spotlight On Kindness: Celebrating Peace!. September 21 is the Annual United Nations International Day of Peace - a day devoted to strengthening the ideals of peace, both within and among all nations and peoples. Let us allow the peace that resides within each of us to shine. Open our hearts to encircle the world in loving kindness. One kind thought, one kind act, one origami peace dove at a time. It all makes a difference. - Mindy

Youth Empowerment And An Inner Transformation Posted by Giang Dang, Sep 18 2018 [My 13 year-old daughter, Clara, is one of my biggest teachers. :) She recently was prompted to reflect on her journey in inner transformation -- and this is what she shared.] Growing up with activists as parents (or vice versa), it was the norm to be switching from global politics to - what I ate at school - to why some NGOs need to stop relying on donors so much to - “can we go to the beach tomorrow?”. I read whatever my parents read, from pretty early on and I guess that shaped me into who I am now and shaped my views of the world greatly. ~But my family was my world~, things were simple. Looking back, it probably was around 6th grade when I started really feeling overwhelmed by outer forces. I read Half the Sky by Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn and my bubble burst. To be aware ... Read Full Story

Empty Space In Our Living Room Posted by Joao Perre, Sep 17 2018 [In a recent conversation about ripples, I was reminded of this story from my childhood.] One of my favorite moments when I was a kid was Christmas, and especially the Christmas tree. :) I always had a special interest -- I don't know why -- but I loved Christmas trees, and I would do anything to build Christmas trees at home. When I was about 10 or 12, my mother -- who is a very, very special person -- posed a challenge that at the time I found very difficult. She said, "This year, instead of decorating a Christmas tree at home, we will provide and decorate a tree for a family in our neighborhood." We were aware of that there were two or three families in our neighborhood that would never be able to build a Christmas tree. But as a kid who loved Christmas trees, :) I became so angry with my ... Read Full Story

Laddership News: Ladders & Transformation Posted by Jane Murray, Sep 16 2018 This month's 'Laddership Newsletter' was just posted online. The process of laddership creates the circumstances in which transformation can arise - not as formula but as rich possibility. This month, Parag introduces an exciting new circle of fellows for the Laddership Circle (nicknamed "Monsoon" :)) that's just begun in India. Recent alum of another circle, Sylvia, brings us a stirring story of subtle laddering from her time with Mother Teresa.

Nuggets From Ron Epstein's Call Posted by Amit Dungarani, Sep 15 2018 This past Saturday, we had the privilege of hosting Awakin Call with Ron Epstein. Ron Epstein, Ph.D., is a Buddhist scholar and practitioner. A prolific writer, translator, ethicist and activist regarding the modern application of Buddhism and Buddhist ethics, he is author of the recent book, Responsible Living: Explorations in Applied Buddhist Ethics--Environment, Animals, GMOs, and Digital Media (March 2018). Dr. Epstein is a graduate of Harvard University, the University of Washington, and UC Berkeley. Born in Kentucky to a Jewish family, he turned to Buddhism in the 1960s and found himself living in the same run-down apartment building in San Francisco as a Chinese monk, Master Hsuan Hua, who turned out to be a contributing figure in bringing Chinese Buddhism to the United States in the 20th century. And so at the age of 24, Epstein commenced his life-long study and practice of Buddhism with the Venerable Master Hua, and ... Read Full Story

Karma Kitchen Romania! Posted by Ashima Goyal, Sep 13 2018 Veritas school in Romania hosted a Karma Kitchen last year, and they are now keen to several times in the coming year and are brainstorming an entire conference on generosity and kindness. Here's a video from Leila and Richard about the first KK with the kids:

An Order We Received Today Posted by Bradley Stoll, Sep 13 2018 Some of you might remember the story from 2 years ago, but here is the ongoing ripples, the "nth force" in full effect ... My son was the one who introduced me to your group, as he unexpectedly passed away in an accident, and I found a Smile Card in his wallet. It's been 2 years since, and his birthday is in October. His kind deeds have exploded since the past few years! For his birthday, we want to spread kindness everywhere we can so need lots of Smile Cards! People are lining up to do this!! How cool is this!

Seeing Simplicity Posted by Ellie Kimura, Sep 12 2018 [Below are reflections on the theme of "simplicity" from my summer.] When we encounter obstacles, challenges, failures, rejections, or struggles, we instinctively feel a sense of disappointment and discourage. As we grow, we continue to face even more obstacles, and I often find these situations to have a domino effect. For instance, if I face an obstacle in something in my life, then sometimes everything else in my life could fall downhill along with that. As I grow older, I am facing more and more failures in my life and this summer I finally asked myself why I get disappointed by these failures and why do failures have to be such a bad thing? Of course I knew that I get disappointed because these struggles were never what I intended to occur. One day, I thought to myself, "If only my life were so simple, then I wouldn’t have any of these problems”. I ... Read Full Story

Magic Happens : Karma Kitchen In Austria ! Posted by Hermann Gams, Sep 12 2018 This August the DreamA-community co-hosted the second Karma Kitchen in Austria. After the premiere in April in Vienna we went to Bildstein this time, a tiny village in Bregenzerwald at the very west of Austria. Two days before the event we just knew that it would happen on August 3rd but we didn´t know where.. On August 1st we met Jasmin and her husband Thomas and they invited us to host the Karma Kitchen in their private house.... All of a sudden things seemed to fall into place and two days later we started the preparation around 1 p.m.. Within a few hours and under extreme summer heat we could set up a delicious four course meal for around thirty guests and it wa again amazing . People loved the concept and we had an unforgetable afternoon but the "real" magic happend a few days after the event. One of the guests wanted to contribute but "forgot" and so she sent money to Dreamicon Valley.... Another dream came true and the next Karma Kitchen will happen soon ! Thank you so much Gregor Pils for the wonderful pictures !

Flashback To Ekatva 2010 :) Posted by Birju Pandya, Sep 12 2018 Just ran into this video from 2010, the first retreat we held at the Gandhi Ashram, called 'Ekatva' -- oneness. Since that spontaneous emergence, there have been well over a 100 such retreats around the globe, including the most recent Gandhi 3.0 retreat that Zilong wrote about. Anyhow, just wanted to share my gratitude for all the goodness that ripples out into the world ...

KindSpring Weekly: Spotlight On Kindness: Focusing On Posted by Ameeta Martin, Sep 11 2018 Latest issue of 'KindSpring Weekly' newsletter is themed Spotlight On Kindness: Focusing On The Process. Our article below discusses how extraordinary people find success and liberation by only focusing on the process and not on the outcome. They have learned that the only thing one actually controls is their own attitude, mindset and actions. This same focus to the process applies to kind acts - when serving others, focus on the serving, and not on how your service is received. - Ameeta

Awakin RAK - Aug 2018 Posted by Pooja Zaveri, Sep 11 2018 We had our monthly Awakening Circle - August Session on the 30th of the month and it was splendid. We had our one hour of our silence session and then we moved on the passage reading which was Fueled By Love by Timber Hawkeve dtd Aug 20-2018, http://www.awakin.org/read/view.php?tid=2284. It was a passage that filled our heart with lots of thoughts on how we can learn to show our compassion and love for everyone irrespective of who the person is . We shared our reflections for the passage and many ideas sprang up and we were able to relate it to all. Even though we cannot control what people think about us but when they get angry or hate us , we surely can comprehend and see them from the angle of "love". As the passage and some reflections that I read makes me understand that we need not ... Read Full Story

Poetry About The Spiritual Pursuit Of Learning Posted by Poonam Singh, Sep 10 2018 I shared this poem I wrote to a new friend who held what I shared so lovingly, and encouraged me to share. This summer I had a love affair with Rabrindhra Tagore's writings and poetry. One evening I wrote this poem to help me capture my vision for learning & education and synthesize so many of the themes I learned through his work. This poem helped me capture the magic I imagine true education to be about. Thank you for reading :) I believe in a spiritual world. We are born into a world where we are already in harmony with it. Children are lovers of stardust. They thirst for sunlight as flowers do. It is where instinct is born. In trees. In nature. Where the sunset and sunrise and the silent glory of the stars are not ignored. The teacher and student are both in study of the eternal life. They eat food together. They learn ... Read Full Story

Blue Medicine: Lesson In Unconditional Love Posted by Sylvia Morales, Sep 10 2018 [During a conversation about ripples last week, I recalled this story.] Back in 1990, I had the opportunity to volunteer with Mother Teresa. I took a training in health issues around caretaking. I was helping the Sisters there give medicine to these dying women. And some of them had very intense medical issues. I mean, I'd never seen people with those medical issues. I had organized all the medicines, and I was given clear instructions. I made sure I read all the directions in how to use these medicines, how to apply them, and all of that. So there I was, and I was very proud of myself -- first of all, for not making a disgusted face when interfacing with the patients -- because some of the illnesses I was seeing were really new to me. Then, I was about being efficient. I had all my things very well-organized, and I was taking care ... Read Full Story

Nuggets From Kevin Hancock's Call Posted by Bela Shah, Sep 09 2018 On September 1, we had the privilege of hosting Awakin Call with Kevin Hancock. Kevin Hancock is the CEO of one of America’s oldest companies, a 6th generation family-run lumber company in Maine founded in 1848. In 2010, at the height of the economic crisis, Hancock was diagnosed with spasmodic dysphonia, a rare neurological disorder that makes speech extremely difficult. So he had to reinvent his leadership style by speaking less and listening more. Hancock Lumber made it through the economic crisis. Kevin then embarked on a Vision Quest and successive trips to the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation "where I met an entire community that felt as if it had no voice" and realized "there are lots of ways to lose your voice in this world. The traditional leadership model often quiets the authentic voices of others." He now helps empower the Sioux of Pine Ridge via housing, health, and education ... Read Full Story