The innocent mistake that keeps us caught
in our own particular style of ignorance,
unkindness, and shut-downness
is that we are never encouraged
to see clearly what is, with gentleness.
Instead, there’s a kind of basic misunderstanding
that we should try to be better than we already are,
that we should try to improve ourselves,
that we should try to get away from painful things,
and that if we could just learn
how to get away from the painful things,
then we would be happy.
That is the innocent, naïve misunderstanding
that we all share,
which keeps us unhappy.
~Pema Chodron
(1936 to pres., Buddhist Teacher)
Thought for Today 