As I listen to the news these days, and hear the reports of continuing and escalating violence in Iraq and troubles elsewhere, I am reminded of the way in which Gandhi urged people to be peace if peace is what we wish to see in the world. I got to thinking about how my life would look if I truly decided to “be peace”, or “be” the compassion I wish to experience in my world. It’s a practice I already follow, but I discovered that – as I thought about it – there are many ways in which I could be more mindful and deliberate about my practice of compassion. I realized that there are any number of times I allow thoughts of judgment or self-criticism to go on longer than I really want them to. I know I can’t keep thoughts from dropping into my mind, but I *can* choose not to feed them as they move through. As a renewed practice of compassion, I can commit to catching these thoughts sooner and focusing, instead, on an awareness of what’s going right in my world, or an awareness of something inspiring. In each moment, we have a choice as to what we bring into the foreground and background of our awareness.

I found myself wondering what it would be like if everyone I encountered in any given day took on a more active practice of compassion and kindness, and wondered about the impact that would have on me and the world around me. I could imagine more smiles and a greater sense of welcome in the regular comings and goings of daily activities. I could sense the possibility of a general atmosphere of greater ease. Beyond that, I suspect that there might well be a sense of surprise, at times, since most of us don’t encounter compassion and kindness as often as we might encounter irritation, distraction, or anxiety in many of the people we meet along the way.

And so, for this week’s experiment, I invite you to imagine what would happen in your world if lots of people, including you, began to make an active choice to shift from criticism and annoyance to kindness in daily interactions. Most importantly, based on Gandhi’s advice, what would happen in you and your world if you decided to consistently practice and express compassion and kindness – or whatever qualities you would like to receive – in your interactions with others. It’s a very powerful choice to make, and I wonder how it would affect the quality of your everyday life.

An important part of the experiment is to be absolutely sure to offer *yourself* the same compassion and kindness that you offer others. So, if you find yourself irritated with someone, or interacting with nastiness instead of kindness, part of the practice is to recognize your humanness and express compassion to yourself for the difficult moment you’re having. Remember, compassion recognizes our inescapable humanness – that we’re bound to create and experience suffering of some kind as we move through the day – and that we can open our hearts to ourselves and others in spite of this fact. So, when you have an interaction that doesn’t go as well as you’d like, or when you think of someone with judgment or criticism, compassion is always there to invite you back into your heart-space, to help you recenter into a basic kindness of spirit, toward yourself as well as others.