So I got laid off. The Dow seems to be in a free fall. People are losing their houses to foreclosure, and generally, there's a great deal of change and uncertainly moving through people's lives everywhere.

I mean everywhere. President Bush is calling for a summit of world leaders because everyone now understands that this is a global economic issue. How refreshing. Globalization through trade is forcing countries around the world to interact as everyone starts to realize just how interdependent we all are.

Interdependent? We're all interdependent? No way. Really? It's not like spiritual teachers haven't been talking about this concept for millenia. God we're a bunch of slow learners.

But with summits like this suddenly happening, it gives me hope that at least in the world of form that people are realizing just how interconnected we all are. And hopefully that will lend itself to greater understandings across all cultures. Baby steps though. It's all baby steps. I just hope we don't trip too bad.

Kindness is a beautiful thing. I think it became a popular term somewhere about the time that the book "Random Acts of Kindness" got popular. I think kindness is one of those simpler versions of love. The big "L" word scares the crap out of most people, but if you put things in terms of kindness, everyone seems to relax a little. It seems to have the cultural connotations to quietly open doors in people's hearts as we all get more comfortable with love.

Love is beautiful. It's beautiful because it doesn't want anything from anyone and accepts everyone exactly as they are. It's an important part of my daily practice to remember to show love to myself as I forge forward on this uncertain spiritual path. Sometimes that just means sitting down and resting. It's a simple kindness for me. Just sitting. Maybe watching TV, which isn't my favorite thing to do in the world, but every now and then, a sitcom isn't a bad thing to remember an old comfortable with.

I think of kindness a lot in terms of being kind to oneself. Loving oneself also seems to be tough for a lot of people, so I say be kind to yourself. You don't have to do that extra lap at the track or spend another late night at work. Take time for yourself. Read that book that you've been wanting to read. Go to your favorite yoga class. Relax. I know your mind is saying, "but, but, but...." Really I've found these simple kindnesses make all the other stuff in life easier to do; I can see and think a lot clearer when I've been kind to myself.

That's my blog for today. Explore kindness in your life. You don't have to find enlightenment or spiritual awakening today; just get yourself a nice hot cup of cocoa. That's enough. That's already perfect.