Rule Golden The

Rule Golden The

Why–I hear you ask–did you write “The Golden Rule” backwards?

It came to me years ago, after I first started practicing yoga. It happened like this: There was once a special cake I was going to make for a party that Gloria and I were going to. It’s an Austrian cake called a “Dobos Torte.”

It takes a lot of time to make.   When I got up in the morning and went downstairs to begin, the kitchen was spotless. Gloria said, “I know how awful it is to cook in a messy kitchen, so I thought I would get up early and clean it for you before you began.”

I thanked her, but truth be told, I thrive in disarray. (Something to do with being male I think.) But it made me think about The Golden Rule: “Do unto others as you would have others do unto you.” And it made me realize that most of us actively practice it, especially with those we love.

Say it backwards and it comes out “Others do unto you, as they would have you do unto them!”   In other words, if my insight was correct, it was Gloria that didn’t like to cook in a messy kitchen, and she was simply doing for me something she would like if someone did for her.

And so, at the appropriate time, I did. And I was right.

Now think about the special things your closest friend or your loved one do for you, and know that each thing is likely something they would want you to do for them. Remember the gestures, write them down if necessary, and when the opportunity presents itself, give them something that you now already know for certain will make them feel good.

Next month I’ll tell you how, before I came to this insight, two separate incidents brought Gloria and I to an amusing crisis early in our courting days (over 45 years ago.)