Always Choose Love and Kindness

Today my husband and I have been doing our quarterly and annual business taxation and there have been more than a few moments when we have both been a little over it and could willingly have given in to the anger and irritation that is inclined to rise to the surface at such times. To add to the pressure, in order to access some of the data required, I had to install some new computer software and I am never one to enjoy that.  I have to read instructions, dig out passwords, carefully follow instructions and have few distractions to reduce possible mistakes.  My husband, usually an immensely patient man, can get a little testy if the general flow of the work gets interrupted by small things like a software update that is very slow to load.  All in all, a great test of how effective our personal development really is.   Was choosing love and kindness a real option?

One of my aims, in pursuing extensive personal development, is to become a better and better person; to be able to have a stable and reasonable presentation no matter what and to keep a happy and positive mood. So you can see that today would be a great challenge for that.  With the exception of a couple of moments when we were each and at times both, a little testy, I am pleased to say that we made it!!  Now there is a point to this little ramble.

As the day went by, I was reminded of the writings of a friend of mine; Letizia De Rosa. In her book, Conversations With My Mother, Letizia devotes some time to coping with the angry moments and the advice is as follows:-

• Try to find the act of love and kindness in every circumstance.  Do that because it is not easy.
• Seek opportunities to love and be grateful, especially when you least feel like it or want to.
• Always strive to be happy and see things from a positive perspective.
• It is not easy, but love is our only destination.

So, with great effort, I carefully sought love and kindness for my husband while we carried out this tiresome task. I did it because it was not easy – easy would have been to vent right there and then, but that was not in keeping with who I want to be.  It is no longer an option.  At the end of the day, we are both immensely grateful that it is done, and we look forward to a celebration this evening.  We are also very happy to have completed the task and to have found a way to do it more easily next time.  Simple message from Letizia and her mum and sometimes the simpler the better.  As in this case.  You can read more about Letizia on her website.