Of course, we all are many juxtapositions in our complexities, but some of us wear that proudly and prominently. Moleek is a self-proclaimed "jack-of-all-trades, master of some". Despite being in a leadership role as the Field Operations Senior Manager for Washington Trails Association, Moleek exudes humility. Despite a past life as a bouncer at a music venue in Oakland (I imagine that takes some kind of toughness), it was Moleek who during our WFR night rescue scenario remembered to (undistracted by the broken back and moulage makeup realism that was testing all of us) keep attending to the humanity of our injured person. Actually when asked, he’ll list off kindness and compassion as necessary qualities for his past life working as a bouncer.

Identity is an interesting thing. It forms organically and is dynamic -- yet gets set in concrete in reference to something else. Too many of us solidify our identities only in response to what’s around us, rather than from what lies within and is enduring. As my physical appearance made very apparent to me, (a female in male dominated sports, a professional in male dominated industries, and a multiracial human with brown skin in majority white communities), until someone points to a feature of your identity and suggests that it’s different, you just walk around the world feeling like you.

There is not a single person in this world who is standing on the same ground today as they were a few months ago. All over the world the ground that appears solid still risks flexing under our feet. We are in change. Change requires reorienting. Change that keeps coming adds a towering load to our nervous systems. If there are days that you are frustrated about not being 100% fine, remember that adaptation to change requires much of us.

Richard Davidson and Daniel Goleman discuss contemplative practices to build empathy and compassion, followed by a demonstration of one such practice by Sasha Dingle, Mountain Mind Project Founder. View more videos like this and develop Emotional Intelligence with the Dr. Daniel Goleman Emotional Intelligence Courses.