'selfless gratitude' -
not something one inherits;
a skill one acquires.

In my journey toward embracing compassion as a way of being, I’ve come to understand that the path to selflessness is not about denying myself, but rather expanding my sense of self to include the wellbeing of others. Every moment presents an opportunity to awaken the heart, to lean into discomfort rather than avoid it, and to cultivate a deep empathy that transcends personal interests.

I’ve learned that the practice of compassion involves recognizing the suffering in the world without becoming overwhelmed by it. It’s about training the mind to meet challenges with patience and openness, seeing others’ pain as a reflection of our shared human condition. When I make a commitment to serve others, I am not striving for perfection but rather accepting my own imperfections as part of the learning process.

Through mindful awareness, I realize that my own difficulties and struggles are a gateway to greater understanding and connection. By confronting fear and vulnerability, I begin to soften my heart, not just toward others but toward myself. Compassionate action is not grand gestures but small, consistent choices to live with kindness, equanimity, and courage. It is a practice of being present, attentive, and fully engaged with life as it unfolds.

The key teaching is that real transformation comes not from external achievements or recognition but from the inner work of shifting from self-centeredness to a broader, more inclusive perspective. True freedom arises when I let go of the need to protect my ego and embrace the interconnectedness of all beings, recognizing that my happiness is inextricably tied to the happiness of others.

—

Compassion is seeing what hurts
and staying close anyway.
It’s the hand that helps you up
without asking for thanks.

It doesn’t turn away
when things get hard,
and it doesn’t fix,
just shows up.

It’s the quiet presence
that makes room for pain,
a choice to stand with someone
even when you can’t solve a thing.

Compassion is simply being there;
eyes open, heart open,
willing to share the weight
for as long as it takes.

— Sincerely, Boris

There’s not enough.
I’m more than two handfuls,
I can’t keep it in anymore.

The glass peels off like wax,
and drips onto the floor.
I’m bleeding, I’m bloodied.
I can barely keep myself,
out of the puddle
forming on the floor.

I couldn’t ask for help,
I’d hate to take it all—
I’d need all their hands,
just to hold myself.

Someone with four arms,
I hope they come to save me.
With just two hands,
I can’t help hold
their spilling glass too.

Hot fumes evaporate from my ears
You have killed us both
And brought my furnace to tears
Why not abandon me, little moth?

I shall pass on and you shall pass
Honour my sacrifice, honour myself
Look only where the stars reside
Not beneath earth where my soul doth hide.

From now your flesh has the life of two
So do what I'd do, do what you'd do.
Farewell to you, ride through and true
In flesh I died, in spirit with you.

When you’re stretched too thin
And you find it hard to breathe
Just wait a little bit for me
So I can teach you to stand still

Even if I can’t do it myself
I will rip both of my eyes off
So you can finally see
I will rip both my legs off
So you can have something to stand with
And when I have nothing else to give
I will hand my heart in
To your calloused hands
That have bled out from trying

And I’ll confine to you my thoughts
The ones that don’t make sense at all
So you can cherish them and remember
All the good memories I have saved of you
So you can see yourself from my eyes
And realize, how perfect you are
How flawless you look, how quickly you talk
How with a single move
you can make a whole new star

All I need for you to know
Is that if you’re in a dead void
And you don’t have anything to hold on to
I will be by your side after only my soul’s left
And even if I’m too broken for you to mimic
Or too lost for you to find me
I’m grateful you have my heart
Because you could’ve never broken it in any pieces
because all the things you touch
Come alive in new raíces.

I wanted to be an iceberg
Floating over the mass of water
Hard and cold
A battleground for polar bears and seals
Shining, reflecting the sun
Located in the ends of the earth

Wanting, wary, wintry

And after all of my efforts
The thinking and scheming
All I got was pain
All I received was rejection

Now all I ask is to dissolve
To become one with the water

Warm, waving, wild

A home for precious fishes
Where seals and polar bears swim

To disappear in the ocean
To be the ocean
Spread across the Earth
To be ****** in by clouds
And bring rain to the forests

And after all my efforts
The motions and the serving
Hoping that I find peace
And deep acceptance

There is a fine line
between
selflessness and self-deprecation

(and I have crossed it)

Although reciprocation would be ideal
it does not have to be all or nothing.
If I can be
as a single flower is to the meadow
then I am content.

Flay me, shroud my body
in Saran wrap, for others to see
what you mean to me: a relief
map of live suffering,
writhing organs in a plastic bag,
a human soup to drag
behind you, sensitive to everything you do,
overflowing with formless worship,
pink, raw and dreaming
of a vicious kinship:
Open yourself and slip my parts in,
we can exist, two hideous beasts
within a single beautiful skin.