We can begin to open our hearts to others when we have no hope of getting anything back. We just do it for its own sake.

It's helpful to remind yourself that meditation is about opening and relaxing with whatever arises, without picking and choosing.

If we Pause and breathe in and out, then we can have the experience of timeless presence, of the inexpressible wisdom and goodness of our own minds. We can look at the world with fresh eyes and hear things with fresh ears.

I can't overestimate the importance of accepting ourselves exactly as we are right now, not as we wish we were or think we ought to be.

The next step is to learn to communicate with the people that you feel are causing your pain and misery- not to learn how to prove them wrong and yourself right but how to communicate from the heart.

Blaming is a way to protect your heart, trying to protect what is soft and open and tender in yourself.

In a nutshell, when life is pleasant, think of others. When life is a burden, think of others.