It is truly a privilege to be alive. You have the chance to spend a lifetime on this beautiful planet and to experience the most amazing, the most incredible, the most moving experience possible.

You share it with billions of people. Billions of creatures and plants. Huge expanses of breathtaking mountain ranges and powerful oceans.

Every living thing on this beautiful planet contributes to its beauty and you have a responsibility to live on it in as respectful a way as possible, treating its resources and its gifts with care and compassion. That means living alongside people and loving them with an open heart. It means being mindful of the things you take from the planet in order to survive and acknowledging the impact of your taking them, whether that's plant life or animals, birds and fish, or the energy resources you need to keep a roof over your head.

It means being mindful of the resources you take from areas of the world that suffer as a result of that need, and of the people of those areas whose lives become harder because of poverty, disease, land erosion and exploitation. You can make compassionate choices about what you take by supporting projects geared towards fair trade and equal opportunity.

It means acknowledging that animals have a right to life just as much as you do, and that you have the potential to be their ultimate predator. You have the choice not to see animals and fish as convenient to the human race, but rather that they add diversity and colour to the landscape. They feel, they bleed, they suffer just as much as you do, and living a compassionate life demands that you are mindful of what you eat and why.

And it means putting the whole of your heart into connecting with others. It means doing what you can to make their lives easier and happier.

Aren't these better choices than mindlessly taking with no thought of return? And doesn't making these choices give you the chance to celebrate what an amazing, breathtaking experience your life can be on this planet, spinning through space?

Neel Raman
http://www.HoopsAndFreedom.com