Kindness - Jane's Mindful Musings

Jane Witherspoon is a Canadian expat adventurer, yoga instructor, and passionate rambler who recently relocated from Panama to Denia, Spain. 

I end every yoga class I teach with this affirmation: "As you go out into your day, may the world remain kind to you, and may you always keep your thoughts and words kind upon yourself."

Kindness to ourselves and others makes the world happier — boosting feelings of happiness, being in control, confidence, and optimism.

What do we mean when we say the word "kind"? Kindness is a word we use ubiquitously to describe many different situations. However, there is a difference between describing someone as kind and the action of kindness.

Most of us try to be friendly and polite to people and treat them with respect, but being kind is more profound than this. Kindness conveys that we genuinely care about someone. There is a depth to being kind that isn't required when being nice.

Kindness cannot be taught, but it comes from caring enough for yourself and others that you want to do something unselfish. It must begin internally — you must genuinely love yourself to find true kindness for others. It requires that we act intentionally with self-compassion. This can be easier said than done; we can be our worst enemies.

During midlife, women can be overwhelmed by the physical and mental changes due to hormonal fluctuations and other significant changes in their lives. There were several years during my transition, as I like to call my journey through menopause, when the limits of my existence revolved solely around what was happening in my life.

Dealing with internal changes and upheaval in my life left me reeling and feeling insecure. It's hard to love yourself when you feel like the constants in your life are dissolving. However, we must continue to like ourselves, even when we fall short of our expectations.

If we beat ourselves up when we falter or fail, it will stop us from trying new things and taking chances. But when we are kind to ourselves and exhibit self-compassion, even if we fail, it is easier to continue liking ourselves. Self-compassion nurtures an ability to experiment, explore, and make courageous life decisions while changes are occurring.

When we embrace self-kindness, we can also find compassion for others.

In today's world, we need to express this love towards each other more than ever. The prevalence of social media, reality shows focusing on negative behavior, and news highlighting our differences and encouraging lousy behavior may negatively impact how we feel and care about others.

In a world of turmoil, people profoundly need our kindness. Being kind is fundamentally the greatest gift we can give to ourselves and the world. Kindness is caring for others and helping them improve their lives. It is about genuinely connecting with people in a meaningful way.

One of our Sole Sister Rambler Founders, Naomi Weisman, recently shared this story. It is a beautiful example of sharing kindness.

"While traveling from Canada to Australia, I missed my flight connection and had to spend 24 hours in Los Angeles. I met another woman traveler while I was waiting who had just lost her mother and was distraught and overwhelmed. She was in the same predicament as me with the flight delay. We decided to stick together and spend the day wandering around L.A. She went from weeping on and off to laughing with me and marveling at the wild city."

And so, my Sole Sisters, as you ramble through your week, may the world remain kind to you and always keep your thoughts and words kind to yourself.

Friendships between women,
as any woman will tell you,
are built of a thousand small kindnesses...
swapped back and forth and over again.
― Michelle Obama, Becoming

READ MORE > Jane's Mindful Musings, Rambler Cafe Blog.