Often in the morning as I get ready for the day, I listen to Oprah’s Soul Series on Oprah.com or some other inspirational program.  This morning, I listened to a conversation she had with Wayne Dyer and he said something that reminded me of a powerful practice I’ve done in the past.  It has to do with seeing yourself in others, in recognizing that we are all made of the same stuff.  It also reminded me of the Buddhist proposition that every living being wants the same things – to be free from suffering and to be happy.

The emphasis in Wayne Dyer’s comments in this particular conversation was that when he interacts with people who may be slow in serving him a meal at a restaurant, or in some other way that might become an irritant, he recognizes the same parts of him that are in them.  It allows him to live as love, rather than experiencing the other person as separate from him.

This reminded me of the chant I wrote about in these experiments a number of years ago, “I am you and you are me,” that I heard on an interview on New Dimensions, a radio show that interviews inspiring thinkers, healers, scientists and other wonderful people.  I was walking through Central Park at the time I heard it, and found myself deeply connected with a sense of oneness as I passed by people, animals, birds, trees, and other living things chanting “I am you and you are me”.

For this week’s experiment, I invite you to explore your experience when you recognize yourself in others.  For example, when you are caught in a traffic jam and someone honks at you, notice if you can recognize the impatient part of yourself in that person.  Also allow yourself to be curious about what might be happening in that person’s life that would make them need to move through traffic more quickly.  They may have an appointment and are going to be late, or perhaps a loved one is in the hospital and they need to get there, or maybe they’ve simply become caught up in the rush of everyday life and aren’t even aware of how tense they have become.

Whatever the examples you give yourself, remember that all of us humans have the same range of reactions and qualities in ourselves – some more and some less.  To take an opportunity to experience yourself in others offers a way to move through the world with greater ease.  To find the places of connection rather than separation supports living with an open heart, and living with an open heart – as we’ve explored many times in the past – supports a more resilient way of being in the world.

As with all these experiments, please move through this one lightly.  Allow it to offer you information about living consciously, about discovering the choices available in each moment, without adding any judgment or stress to the discoveries you may make along the way.