Book excerpt: Given the state of the world these days, many of us are asking: Can anyone (everyone) learn to be wiser and kinder? Meeting the Moment with Kindness offers a resounding yes, as well as a roadmap for cultivating seven aspects of mindfulness that can help us access our inherent wisdom, stability and compassion. Our effort to develop mindfulness is not a small or simple undertaking, but one that is urgently needed. Many of us desire to slow down, quiet the mind and attain greater contact with our lives, but we get stuck in habits and behaviors that don't support our aspirations. This book can help us get unstuck by exploring three fundamental questions: How do we develop the inner resources needed to care for ourselves and our world mindfully? What stands in the way of living mindfully, seeing clearly and acting wisely? How do we meet our obstacles with curiosity and compassion? Through wisdom teachings, personal stories and evidence-based research, Meeting the Moment with Kindness offers a pragmatic framework for developing mindfulness and befriending the inevitable obstacles on our path.