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Don’t make a whole to-do about it. Don’t get down on yourself be- cause you’re not an expert rower; don’t start reading too many books in order to do it right.

Bernie Glassman

When we bear witness, when we become the situation – homelessness, poverty, illness, violence, death – the right action arises by itself. We don’t have to worry about what to do.
BERNIE GLASSMAN

Buddhist Death Inspirational
The fewer or less diverse voices you invite to the table, the smaller and narrower your solution will be and the fewer people it will serve.
BERNIE GLASSMAN

Fewer Less Narrower People Serve The Solution
When I spend time with students, they tell me that they’ve read something in a book or heard something from a teacher that they don’t think they’re living up to. And I tell them, “Take care of yourself right now.
BERNIE GLASSMAN

Book Care Living Something Spend Take Teacher Tell
I always tell people that if you get upset over what someone says, imagine him or her with a clown’s nose on and you won’t get so angry.
BERNIE GLASSMAN

Nose People Upset
When we go… to bear witness to life on the streets, we’re offering ourselves. Not blankets, not food, not clothes, just ourselves.
BERNIE GLASSMAN

Bears Clothes Offering
Don’t power yourself or blast through; rock with the way things are.
BERNIE GLASSMAN

Blast Power Things Way Yourself
Our work may be important, but we don’t take it too seriously. Otherwise, we get attached to one relatively small thing and ignore the rest of life.
BERNIE GLASSMAN

Important Life May Rest
We’re creating a little niche for ourselves instead of working the whole canvas.
BERNIE GLASSMAN

Creating Littles Niche
I honor businesses for what they do, I honor nonprofits for what they do, I honor government for what it does, and then I invite everyone to the table so that together we can come up with innovative and broad-based solutions that can serve as many people as possible.
BERNIE GLASSMAN

Business Everyone Government Together
Most important, once we study NVC we can’t ignore the potential for transformation that lies in any difficult relationship – if we only bother to communicate with skill and empathy.
BERNIE GLASSMAN

Empathy Most Relationship Skill Transformation
It’s very rare to be in a state where there’s nothing in, where you have no attachment to any idea or concept about yourself.
BERNIE GLASSMAN

Attachment Compassion Experience Yourself
Sometimes you come to a fall and sometimes you come to white water. Your rowing has to adapt to the situation.
BERNIE GLASSMAN

Fall Rocks Wind
When you care about perfection, you care about an expectation. But there is also caring for where I am right now, for what’s happening right now.
BERNIE GLASSMAN

Book Caring Teacher
I always have this red nose in my pocket, and if it looks like I’m taking things too seriously, or the person I’m talking to is taking them too seriously, I put the nose on. It doesn’t matter what we’re doing or talking about, it doesn’t matter if we agree or disagree, the nose changes everything.
BERNIE GLASSMAN

Looks Pockets Talking
The basic problem, actually, is how to get rid of the idea that we’re going to get rid of our problems. Only then can we relate directly with the real issues of our life.
BERNIE GLASSMAN

Ideas Issues Problem Real Relate
Befriend what’s happening, not just who you’re supposed to be or what the world should be like. This is where you are now. So how do you care for yourself this minute?
BERNIE GLASSMAN

Befriend Care Minute Supposed

Don’t make a whole to-do about it. Don’t get down on yourself be- cause you’re not an expert rower; don’t start reading too many books in order to do it right.

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Popular Authors

Don’t make a whole to-do about it. Don’t get down on yourself be- cause you’re not an expert rower; don’t start reading too many books in order to do it right.

Related Topics

Popular Authors

More Bernie Glassman Quotes