Jeff Bridges on “Abiding”

"According to Merriam-Webster’s official definition, to abide means to wait patiently for something, or to endure without yielding, accept without objection. That is no easy feat, especially in a culture that is success-driven, instant-gratification-oriented, and impatient, like ours. True abiding is a spiritual gift that requires great mastery. The moral of the story, for me, is: be kind. Treat others as you want to be treated. You never know when the stranger you meet on the road may be an angel–or the Dude–in disguise. I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least among you, you did not do for me. * Whether the Dude is a Lamed-Vavnik, an angel in disguise, or merely a kindhearted loser, we should treat him as he treats us, with respect and compassion. We should all treat everyone we encounter as a righteous soul on account of whom the world abides. That’s very Dude.” — taken from The Dude And The Zen Master by Jeff Bridges and Bernie Glassman (2012)

*Matthew 25:45