Each time you stay present with fear and uncertainty, you're letting go of a habitual way of finding security and comfort.

Tonglen dissolves your solid sense of "I'm the wise person, I'm going to help this poor, unfortunate loser."

It's not a terrible thing that we feel fear when faced with the unknown. It is part of being alive, something we all share.

We are like children building a sand castle. We embellish it with beautiful shells, bits of driftwood, and pieces of colored glass. The castle is ours, off limits to others. We’re willing to attack if others threaten to hurt it. Yet despite all our attachment, we know that the tide will inevitably come in and sweep the sand castle away. The trick is to enjoy it fully but without clinging, and when the time comes, let it dissolve back into the sea.

If you follow your heart, you're going to find that it is often extremely inconvenient.

Trying to run away is never the answer to being a fully human. Running away from the immediacy of our experience is like preferring death to life.

When you have made good friends with yourself, your situation will be more friendly too.