大象传媒

Good Morning.聽聽Shoes are powerful objects. More than anything else we wear, they adapt themselves to our body and quickly become our friends 鈥� or our foes. They cause us pain and pleasure, make a statement about who we are, and can even become an extension of our personality.
Last year in London, the Empathy Museum put on an free event called A Mile in My Shoes that invited participants to literally put on a pair of someone else鈥檚 shoes, and embark on a physical, emotional and imaginative journey to see the world through another person鈥檚 eyes. The collection included the shoes of an NHS surgeon, the tottering high heels of a drag queen, and the threadbare footwear of a refugee.聽聽鈥淩eal happiness in life starts when we start to cherish others鈥� says my Buddhist teacher Lama Zopa. It can bring an unexpected sense of ease and joy to shift our focus away from our own concerns, and to consciously聽make the time to explore and acknowledge how someone else is feeling. Next time we find ourselves obsessing about what to buy, we can calm our mind by considering what someone else might want or need. As an alternative to worrying about what others think of us, we can choose to deliberatly聽take pleasure in the achievements of someone else. When someone hurts our feelings, we can decide not to be a victim, and instead consider how that person might be hurting too. The choice is like night and day.聽聽However attached we are to our own familiar shoes, why not try wearing someone else鈥檚 today? Let鈥檚 pray that we can each find a moment to open our hearts to the hopes and fears of someone else.聽