Smile At a Stranger Every Day

“Understand that no one is greater than another.  Feel it.  Practice helping one another.  We are all rowing the same boat.” – Brian Weiss, MD

Many Lives, Many Masters — a classic book about reincarnation (yes, reincarnation) — has been siting on my bedside table for the past week, and I finally finished it last night.  A friend gave me her copy after we talked about past life regression as a healing technique, and I was eager to learn more.  For years I’ve found the idea of reincarnation comforting, not due to any scientific explanation or personal experience, but just because of the hope it offers about what could be…what might be.

But beyond this notion of what might be (the beginning of faith, as I see it), this book made me think about what is.  It evoked a strong connection to the human condition…to the experiences that we all share.  It reminded me that we’re all on this planet to learn and to evolve and to be better people.  To be kinder and more understanding and more compassionate.  To be good neighbors and good parents and good children and good friends.  To live in peace and see growth in pain and joy in growth.  And whether you believe in reincarnation or not, these “lessons” (as the author calls them) feel like universal truths.

Since I began reading this book, I’ve found myself being more patient than usual, observing reactions to things, smiling at strangers, listening before talking.  These actions weren’t born out of fear or hope of what an afterlife might bring, but instead, they stemmed from a deeper-than-usual feeling that we humans share more experiences than might meet the eye.  And until my all-over-the-place spiritual compass lands in one place, these simple actions…these ways of being…feel like a good start.