The Dalai Lama -- It Takes A Village

Really. The Dalai Lama is visiting Seattle and doing a 5-day event the Seeds of Compassion - about teaching compassion to our kids. I had the pleasure of seeing His Holiness in person on Friday and I gotta say - WOW. Very cool. He is an impressive individual (identified at age 2 as the reincarnation of the 13th Dalai Lama; trained as a monk; exiled to Northern India when China took control of Tibet; Nobel Peace Prize Winner; and purveyor of Peace and Human Kindness).  He believes that Compassion is one route to peace -and that we can all make a difference. He was personable and funny, thoughtful and kind. He has a deep interest in the scientific basis for compassion (there is suprisingly quite a bit). As part of the program, a number of distinguished panelists shared their stories of hope, their research on compassion, and their questions for His Holiness - making it an inspiring couple of hours. I will certainly not do his message justice here, but suffice it to say, I will be finding more compassion within myself and giving it away whenever I can - be that in personal interactions or community involvement.

The importance of raising our children with compassion became abundantly clear - they are our hope to end war, save the planet, and relieve human suffering. The lessons were clear. The directive - simple. Act with compassion - every day. Children learn by example and if we all act compassionately every day, there can be no place for war.

As I reflect, one story really captured the power inside each child. While all the stories of hope were quite inspiring - the one Mary Gordon told really stuck with me. A child who had been mistreated his entire life (saw his mother murdered, was raised in the foster system, was never loved, had failed 2 grades before age 14) had risen above his circumstances and found compassion for a little baby. He held and cuddled the little baby to a deep slumber. He then asked his teacher "Do you think someone who has never known love can be a good father?" Mary then closed her story by saying: "We all know it takes a village to raise a child, but sometimes it also takes a child to raise a village." Amen.