When we see our shared humanity and understand that we all seek happiness and do not want suffering, the heart’s response is naturally one of kindness and friendliness.
One thing to keep in mind about wilderness training: you’re never ready, but that’s how you cultivate pāramīs. Stay in touch with your Dhamma field and you’ll always be ready to meet the uncomfortable.
Through pūjā we take refuge not in a world of time and structure but in what the mind knows. We take refuge in knowing the heart can open to suffering.