Few of us are perfectly kind to others, to animals (pets), to even ourselves.
I imagine we put kindness to the test for the past 10 months living in close proximity to part of family and away from other parts. Living more online than ever before, we discover that it is easier to be unkind online than in person.
One of the terminology things I like about Yoga is the word Practice. Each time we come to the mat, we are practicing our poses. A little improvement each time.
Looking at the past year, how often did we practice kindness. Looking ahead to the new year, perhaps we see where we could use more practice.
I watched on YouTube a violin master class led by a virtuoso violinist. He conducted a youth orchestra. A young man, most likely late teens, played a concerto. As the maestro led the violinist through different parts following the performance teaching phrasing and sensitivity, he mentioned, “You have probably practiced this about a thousand times and played it a hundred times with your teacher before performing here.”
We admire the performance and don’t consider the work that goes into it.
Just so with kindness. We must practice a thousand times to get close to being right. And even then, we still have more to learn. Remember, the proper phrase is not “practice makes perfect”, but “perfect practice makes perfect.”
Practice kindness.
Faith Venture 
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