Belonging

Kathleen Yap was born in Singapore but moved to Taiwan and then England by the time she was 5 years old. She felt like an outsider, judged and friendless, as a child. Nature became a solace anywhere she went. "I want to show people that it's okay to be vulnerable in my love for nature. To inspire others to do the same" said Kathleen.

Check out the moving video below, a tribute to the possibilities and connection possible through nature.

 

Entrepreneur Promotes E-bikes In Ghana

British-born businesswoman, Valerie Labi, began converting secondhand pushbikes into e-bikes during the pandemic. Four years later, there are 300 delivery riders using e-bikes in Ghana's capital, Accra, with a vision to expand the effort into additional African countries.

Read the full story here.

A Famed Cellist Played For Bison In Montana

The legendary Yo-Yo Ma took his cellist to a buffalo pasture in Blackfeet lands. He was playing for the free roaming buffalo herd reestablished by the Blackfeet Tribe toward a multi-Tribal effort to restore 30 to 60 million bison in the western United States.

Read the full story here.

Me-to-We Youth Retreat in Ahmedabad + Ripples 

Last month a retreat was held in Ahmedabad with youth aged 18 to 25. It was an embodied head-hands-heart journey from me-to-we in the spirit of inner transformation and service. During the retreat, youth had a lot of fun singing, dancing, listening to each others’ life journeys, and participating in acts of kindness together. They also met some uncommon love warriors and had a few surprises throughout their three days together!  

Watch an uplifting video of highlights from the retreat here and check out this post about some ripples of kindness that emerged.

We are not merely what we do, but who we become by what we do.

'I No Longer Pray':

I no longer pray—  now I drink dark chocolate  and let the moon sing to me. I no longer pray— I let my ancestors dance  through my hips at the slightest provocation. I no longer pray— I go to the river and howl my ancient pain  into the current. I no longer pray— I ache, I desire, I say “yes” to my longing. I no longer pray as I was taught but as the stars crawl onto my lap like soft animals at nighttime  and God tucks my hair behind my ears  with the gentle fingers of her wind and a new intimacy is uncovered in everything, perhaps it's that I’m finally learning  how to pray. ... [Read more]

Seed questions for reflection: How do you relate to the notion of prayer as finding an intimacy with everything? Can you share a personal story of a time you recognized intimacy with everything? What helps you feel your connection to all that is?

Couple of stories from our KindSpring community this week ...

drjoybug: Hello All. Good Whatever ...
Hello all. Good whatever time of day it is by you Kindnesses this week ..Paid for lunch for a friend. .. pleasantly passed the time of day with another woman in the waiting room. [Read more...]

lt33: Act Of Kindness I ...
Act of kindness I was at the vending machine at the mall waiting to pick up my brother from work and this little boy probably around age 10 came up to me hey do you have 4 quarters for $1? I knew I might have had a little change left [Read more...]

Mish: ๐Ÿฟโค๏ธ Popcorn Kindness
One of our neighbor-friends knows hubby loves popcorn ๐Ÿฟ (Skinny Pop popcorn)….when we returned home yesterday we found a bag on our porch….with no note , but we knew right away who it was from :) ๐Ÿ˜Š Hubby wrote this ditty & sent it to her : ๐Ÿฟ “Somebody dropped a bag ... [Read more...]

New AI Detects 13 Deadly Cancers With 98% Accuracy From Tissue Samples

While cancer remains the leading cause of death, most cancers are treatable, and early detection and intervention are key. A new study from the University of Cambridge and the Imperial College of London details how artificial intelligence may be used to identify cancer before it fully develops. As noted by Shamith Samarajiwa, lead author of the paper, “This will provide better patient outcomes.” 

Read the full story here.

I Spent A Week At A Chat Bench. Here's What I Learned.

Chat benches first appeared in 2019, in response to scams targeting the lonely. Since then, they've begun popping up worldwide. In a special article, Annabel Abbs-Streets recounts her experience with the chat bench as she faced an empty nest. "Daily walks to the chat bench softened the pain of an emptying home. They became a pilgrimage to possibility -- offering me radically different perspectives."

Read the full article here.

The Surgeon Who Accepts Community Service as Payment

As a child, Demetrio Aguila admired his physician father who worked long hours, but with such a higher purpose that “there was always joy in everything he did.”

Demetrio wanted to find his own joyful higher purpose. He became a surgeon, and was inspired by his experiences with humanitarian services in the military to help the less fortunate. After much soul searching and some stumbling, he created a program where people have the option to pay for their surgery by volunteering at a local non-profit.

Studies demonstrate that “people who are invested in their outcome get better outcomes.” Demetrio said if he did their surgery “without that investment on the part of the patient, I'm taking away one of the most important tools for a successful result.” He invests in success, and it creates a ripple effect: the patient gets the surgery without crushing debt and possible bankruptcy; because they had to invest, they take better care of themselves; they regain or enhance their dignity and self-esteem; and both the non-profit and community benefit from the service. Demetrio hopes to inspire others to develop creative ways to invest in their neighborhoods and help those the current system leaves behind. [Read more ...]

Enjoy a couple of recent stories from our KindSpring community ...

drjoybug: Kindness Given This Week ...
Kindness given this week ..toys to the dog daycare I use ..letting multiple people in front of me during the road construction new my home ..talk and laugh with door dash drivers ..was patient and kind at the bank. [Read more...]

lt33: I Just Want To ...
I just want to reach out to others here hope everyone is staying cool๐Ÿ˜Ž and safe from these heavy tornado winds we've been affected in our neighborhood [Read more...]

Mish: Perfect Timing ๐Ÿ‘Œ๐Ÿป
I had an extra “hug” (prayer shawl), that I crocheted a while ago, that I was waiting for The Universe to let me know who to gift it to. ๐Ÿงถ I found out [Read more...]

End of Search Results
← Prev Page Next Page →