Conjuring Love Out of Adversity

In Zimbabwe, there’s almost 90% unemployment. In South Africa, there are the remnants of apartheid. America has cancelled US AID to the poorest of poor, and is about to tax a huge lifeline: money that gets sent home. Conditions on this amazing continent are not easy, to say the least.
 
And through it all, to a person, the Africans we’ve met, from so many countries on this patchwork continent, are kind and loving and generous. No matter that we come from the west, or from comparative wealth, or have privileges most Africans will never have. Or are Americans, and thus, right now, part of the problem. Still, they create safety and comfort and love, for us and for everyone around them.

As Hafiz said,   “…Look what happens with a love like that.
 It lights the whole sky.” 

Transcript

  Hey everyone, it's Judy Cohen and this is Wake Up Call 4 92. It's, it's so nice to see you all, even if I'm just seeing your, your Hollywood Squares. The mi the miracle of technology. It's such a trip Halfway around the world, South Africa is 10,000 miles from the Bay Area. It's wild. Anyway so I'm in Cape Town, really interesting place and wanna talk about Africa.

So, spent about a half a week in Namibia or three quarters of a week, and then a week, a little bit more than a week in Zimbabwe. Mostly out in the bush. And now I've been in Cape Town for about a week. And this is, this is my only experience with Africa, all of that. So but I wanna just share some impressions of, of a few weeks on this am amazing.

Continent. So we were last together, it was May 14th. I'd been talking about the three trainings Donna Cila, Bana or generosity, ethics and concentration and this, these three kinds of generosity. And I'm gonna get to the Africa part, I promise. The, the first is giving stuff. So giving away clothes, giving away money, even giving away help and advice and with this first kind of generosity.

I don't know about you, but I'm often giving, you know, what I can afford or what I no longer need or with advice. It's kind of what I already know. And it's good to do this because you know there's a need and I wanna help. And maybe that's how you feel too. And it's a casual kind of giving, right? I, I generally don't feel the pinch.

Or you can take it up a level and give something that you really like, but you know, would be helpful to someone else. So maybe some extra time on a project or a sweater that I love and then somebody admires it and so I just give it to them or maybe a little more than I can afford financially, but I know that I can recover.

Right. So second level of giving, kind of friendly giving, right? Or there's something in mindfulness called Royal Giving, right? Like when I take my grandson for an ice cream and, and we're both really excited about the ice cream, and then he drops his, and just right away I give him mine, right? And it's you, I just don't even think about it, but.

You're giving away something or I give away more money than I can really afford, even though I won't be able to earn it back. But it's important, right? So, so that's one kind of giving this giving of, of stuff, things, money, advice, that kind of thing. This is one kind of, of Donna and Jewish philosophy says if you're gonna do this, the highest form is to give anonymously.

So don't ask to have the auditorium named after you.

And then there are two other things that we can give in mindfulness and, and one is this sense of comfort and fearlessness and the other is often called the gift of the dharma, meaning the gift of the teachings. But I, I like to think of it as comfort and fearlessness and then love. Right? And I'm, I'm saying this because, it feels to me like when I'm giving comfort and fearlessness that it leads to love. It opens up space for love, right? Or maybe there, maybe there are two sides of the same coin. I'm not sure. And so, but this kind of Donna, this kind of generosity is what we're seeing here is what we're seeing here in Africa.

And so so that's why I wanted to talk about this. And it fits right in with what we've been talking about giving comfort and fearlessness and giving love. So here, everywhere we go whether it's in the bush or it's in a town, or it's in a big city everyone seems to have a guide and there's lots and lots of guides.

And maybe this is true across the continent. I, I don't know. And maybe it's because of the animals, I don't know, but there are a lot of wild animals outside of the cities and the towns and inside too sometimes. So you, you can't just walk around on your own. Especially at dawn and at dusk and at night.

Just to get to our tent from having dinner, someone would ask, everybody would get escorted by a guide with a rifle. So you have to have a guide. And then plus there are of course, language challenges, although a lot of people speak English and then cultural differences and, and then yeah, all different kinds of things.

But anyway, i'm not sure any of this is why everyone has a guide. I think it's more of a hospitality thing. I think it's more of a, a kind of a love thing. I think people want to guide. And for sure it's a very coveted job because they, they want to welcome people to their world. To their country, to their little corner of their country and to, to get to know other people.

So it's this very coveted job and it's a hard job to get. There are years of study and apprenticeship and working with experienced guides, there are multi-day exams to get certified as a guide. And you have to know like every Latin and common name. Of every plant, animal, bird for the plants, their ancient, their current medicinal uses for the birds and the animals, their behaviors and migratory patterns and dietary characteristics.

I mean, it's really impressive. And so I mentioned in last week's email that one guide told us that a big element of the training is. Is how to get along with people from different backgrounds, which makes sense. Right? And when we, but when we drilled down and we asked how they learned that he looked really surprised.

He kinda like had this very shocked look on his face. And then he said well, they teach us to love everyone. And it was just like this young guy with a rifle and. It was just really amazing. And so it seems like they're learning what we're learning, right? How to cultivate kindness and compassion and generosity and patience and love.

Which points for me towards this giving of comfort and safety, this type of, of Donna of generosity. Right. Because when I'm, when I'm doing that, when I'm being kind and loving, I'm, I'm doing a few things, but the biggest one in one way of thinking about it is is being generous, giving the gift of comfort and safety, right?

Because when I'm being kind and loving, I'm not being mean or grumpy or threatening or aggressive, and so I'm creating this field of comfort and safety. Around me for other people. I'm making it safe for everyone. Comfortable for everyone. Right. It's, it's, it's such a big deal. It's such a, it's such a an important.

Use of mindfulness and something that I think we don't, we don't talk about enough, and especially as lawyers, it's like, can we be these passionate advocates at a time when our, our work is so desperately needed? And, and gosh, with everything that's going on in the us really our advocacy and our intensity is so important.

But can we make. Other people feel safe and comfortable around us. Can we still win if we do that? So it makes sense to me that this is what these guides are learning, you know? It's true that, I mean, we haven't had one person, not one person who's been grumpy or acted frustrated or seemed biased against us, or who even who looked impatient or bored, right?

And so essentially, you know what's happening here is, is the cultivation of character right here with all of us and then here in this beautiful, on this beautiful continent, right? Cultivating a character that's good and kind and loving and doesn't cause harm. And then our love can shine through that and we can bring safety and welcome and comfort to others.

Right.

So we saw, we saw Lions sort of cuddling in their pride. There were 22 of 'em. Then they brought down a baby buffalo and then they were like scratching and blood dripping from their faces and whoa. And we saw Buffalo and we were told like, they're the most fierce. Stay away from them. They will just come right at you and mow you down.

And we went on a walk and we were 15 meters from a herd of elephants who would've made. Mush of us. And we heard these stories about that happening and you have to stay silent. But, but the humans, the humans are so full of generosity, right? It's the humans in Africa that are so amazing. So the it animals are jaw dropping, but the humans are, for me, are the real wonder of Africa.

So I've gone on long, but let's sit together.

Yeah. So finding your finding your practice right in this moment. I.

And maybe it's as simple as just sensing into the body, sitting in the chair, and that's perfect. Or maybe it's following the breath,

or maybe there's a little meta

and you're practicing that.

And whatever it is, whatever you're, you're drawn to or whatever you're practicing right now, just an invitation to see it, to view. What you, what you are doing this endeavor, this commitment as, as building a character.

Maybe right now you're, you are building steadiness of mind and heart.

Or maybe you're, you're cultivating love and kindness, increasing your capacity to love everyone.

Whatever your practice just taking in the

the goodness of, of really building character, which is what you're doing, what's what, what we're doing together. And each of us on our own.

And as you're, as you're practicing.

Just also taking in that

you are not only practicing for yourself, right.

You are practicing for other people too. For all beings in a way.

And so this is a gift. Our practice is a gift to ourselves, and it's a gift. It's a gift to other people.

So whenever you take your practice and take it out into your life and take a breath before you speak or remember that all beings are worthy. Of our generosity of safety. That's, that's you. That's us being generous. That's this beautiful norm of Donna creating safety in the world and just imagining what would happen if we Oh, if we could all do that.

You're pretty different world.    Okay, everybody, thank you so much for being here. It's really great to see you

take good care. I will be off for another two weeks and then I'll be back, so I'll send a note. Take care everyone.