Kelly: Identifying with Her Limitless Potential

I met the Dharma when I had a knee injury so debilitating that I could barely walk. Running had been essential to my mental health, so I knew I needed something else. I googled meditation, found the KMC NYC website, and realized there was a branch class near my home in Jersey City.

I slowly developed a meditation practice, at first just ten minutes a day, and I began to notice that my mind was a lot more stable than it used to be. I started thinking about challenges in my life differently. For instance, there was someone at work that I had always found annoying. My branch teacher, France Roy, taught us this trick — when you are getting ready to see a person you think you don’t like, you can contemplate three positive things about them beforehand.

This actually changed my view of the supposedly “irritating” person, and I began to appreciate him. I saw how loving he was with many people in his life, and I become more patient with him. I saw that when we change our mind, we change our world.

Through studying Buddhism, I have completely reframed my priorities in terms of how I spend my life, moment by moment, and that’s made me a lot happier.  I’ve been practicing for about seven years now, and I have radically changed my mind.

I had always had tendencies toward depression, and I began to realize that I don’t have to identify as a depressed person. I can identify instead with my potential for limitless peace and happiness. Connecting with that, keeping that as my foundational practice, has opened up a lot of possibilities for me.

Now, if I wake up with despondent thoughts arising, I’m better at recognizing those as thoughts that are arising in my mind but not necessarily who I am, who I have the potential to be. I don’t necessarily have to follow those thoughts. And now I am in the habit of recognizing them, knowing the consequences of following them versus tapping into peace. I recognize that it’s a choice. It’s never useful for me to identify as despondent and it’s always useful for me to identify as a person with a limitless capacity for peace and love and happiness. Identifying as someone with limitless potential is so energizing for me. It not only makes me happier, it also helps me get more of the practical things done in my life.

I knew pretty early on that I wanted to teach Dharma, because of how useful I found it in my own life; also, because I’m a professor, I’m comfortable teaching, so I felt this was a way I could contribute.