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Pressing Fast Forward 9/3/2013 3:38:14 PM
“It is good to have an end to journey toward; but it is the journey that matters, in the end.”
― Ernest Hemingway
Like me, do you ever go through times when you wish you could press a fast-forward button and propel yourself into the future? Whether the situation you face is minor or major it is human nature to want to find comfort. We all know we need to work through these experiences in a conscious fashion rather than bury our heads in the sand. These are the times when we access important information about ourselves and life. The learning process may not be easy, but it provides the lessons that bring us wisdom.
The desire to press fast-forward can lead to escapism and denial, both of which only prolong the difficulties, and in some cases make them worse. The more direct, clear, and courageous we are in the face of whatever we are dealing with, the faster we will move through the situation. Trying to find the fast-forward button is akin to pressing pause. The only way out of any situation is to go through it. Stop looking for ways to escape and start paying attention to what is happening.
When you feel the urge to press the fast-forward button, remember you are not alone; we all instinctively yearn to ease our troubles.
Sometimes we find it difficult to see the good in people, places, or situations that aren’t to our liking. We focus on the things we don’t like in our lives as a way of fueling our efforts to create change. There is nothing inherently wrong with this, and it is one way we make progress. However, if we get too caught up in this way of looking at the world, we lose touch with our ability to sit back and simply say yes to everything on our plates, which is the true starting point for all successful activity. Sometimes what we really need is to encourage ourselves to look deeply into all things in our lives to see the inherent goodness at the heart of everything.
At the core of this inquiry is the practice of unconditional acceptance, which can be scary because we feel as if we are being asked not to change the things we don’t like. But when we think this way, we are still operating on the surface of our lives. In order to feel the beauty and warmth of full acceptance, we have to be willing to sink deeper into the stratum underlying the external manifestation of our lives. This deeper place of being is the origin of all lasting change, yet its paradox is that when we are in it, we often don’t feel the need to change anything. From this place, we experience the pure beauty of the process of being alive, and we see that all things change in their own time. We don’t need to force anything. If there are things that we do need to change, from this place of serenity we create the shift easily, our hands guided by an energy that resides at the very center of our hearts.
In our active, goal-oriented culture, we learn to distrust stillness and to engage in busywork on the surface of life. This tendency can blind us to the good that lies at the heart of all things. But all we have to do to see again is stop for a moment, let go of our preconceptions and our agendas, and settle into the very center of our hearts, remembering that it is only from here that we can truly see.
“Once you have traveled, the voyage never ends, but is played out over and over again in the quietest chambers. The mind can never break off from the journey.”
― Pat Conroy
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I’ve made up my mind not to care so much about the destination, and simply enjoy the journey.
Stay positive and well until next time. I wish you all good health, wealth and happiness!
I hope you've found this Newsletter to be somewhat informative, but most of all pleasurable! Goodbye until next month.
Remember – “Do not go where the path may lead; go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson
