Responsibility on this Earth

For as long as I remember, I've disliked the world and humanity. It's a gloomy place to be. I learned how to see the glass as half-empty. The longer I lived, the more discouraged I became, because I observed humans and what they have been doing. Most of them are sleeping; they are unaware. Such condition results in hatred, competition, revenge, and hurt. How could I be inspired to make a difference in this world, where I'm only a tiny, seemingly insignificant speck? It wouldn't really matter if I were gone today, I thought. Until this time. The more I live and grow, the more I realize that no matter how much I don't like what's happening and what humans do or what they are, I'm still responsible for bringing good to this planet. I didn't come here to sulk and complain, to fight or avenge, to discourage or berate. I actually came here to give love in a way that's most suitable for me, which will inevitably result in this planet to become a little better. Even though I'm one of the seven billion people, everything I do and think matters. I'm not saying that I have sudden faith in humanity or that I like this world. What I'm saying is that I have a lot of love to offer and I'm responsible for sharing it with others. Then I can live in peace and leave in peace.

Moving On

For a long time we may brew in our misery and darkness, suffering day in and day out, functioning like zombies. We may understand with our heads that what's happening isn't good for us. But we keep walking the same road every day. Sometimes we find ourselves unable to change our behaviors or break free from what we know is destroying us. However, failed attempts to change prepare us for that moment, when a bright spark of clarity lights up the path of freedom and release. At that moment the pain of pain becomes greater than the pleasure of pain and then we decide to let go. I am at this point, where I have allowed myself to emotionally crumble and the benefits of that are no longer sufficient. It is still painful to look at the reality face-to-face and accept the fact that what has been is no longer the same and will never be the same. So I make a choice to stand face-to-face with Now and see the benefits that await me. There are many open doors, if only I chose to walk through them. Slowly, I am approaching these doors and soon enough I will cross the threshold.

Sit with Pain

It seems that we've been taught to reject painful feelings and do everything we can to either reduce or get rid of them. At times, it works, although in some instances it is only temporary and in others it can be destructive. I have a habit of making myself feel better whenever I'm in emotional pain. I read, I eat, I distract myself, I talk to someone. After all, why wallow in this misery if I can do something about it? Besides, it doesn't feel good anyway. However, recently I tried a different approach because my usual remedial tactics didn't seem to work. I noticed that while I'm in pain, I fail to be fully present in the process. So, I took the most basic step and kept saying to myself out loud, "I'm in pain, I'm in pain." Weird as it seems, the pain became more real and intense, yet there was a part of me that felt relieved. That's because I temporarily let go of my defenses and admitted to the profoundness of my experience without trying to alleviate it, ignore it, modify it, or otherwise "deal" with it. The process of it was excruciating and torturous and the reality of pain lasted for a long time. But in the end, the monster in the closet started to lose its threatening grip. Although fully admitting to pain and sitting with it isn't enough to move on with and incorporate the experience into our lives, it's an essential first step.

Self-Talk

Since I was a child, I've been unintentionally taught to judge and criticize myself. I was taught to find flaws and feel that I'm not good enough. The result was the development of my inner critic that called me "stupid," "idiot," "retarded," or some other epithet, when I made a mistake or failed to do or be something that I expected myself to do or be. I have noticed that for the past few years I began to feel odd listening to my inner critic. It seems more and more ruthless and unfounded. Perhaps, it is because I began to see myself from a different perspective - a perspective that holds me as sacred and valuable, no matter what I do. I'm human after all and humans come here to experiment and learn. How would we do that without mistakes, detours, and failures? A few days ago, I forgot to do something simple. My inner critic didn't call me anything. I was merely trying to figure out how come I forgot. I remembered that there were days, when I would call myself "stupid" for that. I said it out loud, just for the heck of it, and cringed. I noticed that I had an adverse reaction. Then I smiled, because I felt the extent to which I have grown to accept myself, even though there's much more room for further growth.

Titanium

It doesn't work for everyone, but it did work for me. I guess I just reached my boiling point of anger at everything that Life has been throwing my way for a long time. I've been down and depressed and I've also been up and hopeful. The yo-yoing turned to be too exhausting. For a while now, I've started to retain more and more hope in the face of all kinds of adversity. However, the more hope I retained, the more adversity Life gave me, as if to mock me, "Go ahead, let's see how far I can take you to finally break your hope!" I am now pushed over the line that says "logic" on one side and "faith" on the other. Something deep within me decided that brooding and pessimism is no longer applicable, even when Logic is screaming into my ear. The invisible doors that were long closed within me were opened by Anger, taking me to a whole another level. I'm too angry to be discouraged, too angry to give up and brood. I'm way too angry to accept my current situation, because I deserve so much better. By serendipity, a song came along to exemplify exactly where I stand. The lyrics are amplified by the music, which make the song even more powerful. From now on, the statement, "Shoot me down, but I won't fall - I am titanium" is my response to Life.

Doors, Open

Lately, life has given me situations from which there was seemingly no escape. I felt doomed one instance after another. I felt how my faith in life started to dwindle and the more load was put on my back, the more I hunched over to the ground. I've been down to the ground before, but something new was happening this time. I noticed how I actively refused to give up. I just couldn't afford it. It was very clear - the situation was really bad and the usual voice told me, "Pfft, what's there to hope for? It's not gonna happen. There's no light at the end of the tunnel." But then there was another voice that said, "No, no, it doesn't matter how bad it is, push through because you have no other acceptable choice." Indeed, the choice to give up was not acceptable. What would I gain? I believe I'd gain an even worse situation. Do I want it? No. So, I forced myself to have faith and then I noticed that it wasn't really that hard. How do I know that tomorrow or even today things will not change for the better? How do I know that the next moment life will not resolve itself? I don't. Therefore, I consciously chose faith and it didn't let me down. Over and over, it didn't let me down. I kept the doors open and let life do its thing. As a result I feel empowered. I wonder if it becomes a habit, how my life would truly change...

Disapproved

There are times, when no matter what I do, it's never enough for others. The world and people in it exert certain expectations on me that I've learned to desperately meet. Trying to be perfect is what has propelled me forward in many life endeavors. However, there are times, when, according to objective standards, I was perfect, yet some people didn't consider me such. Could I get more perfect? Should I try harder and harder to obtain approval and appease my sense of anxiety? I have. And it turned to be exhausting. Eventually, the reward of being perfect has too high of a price. At some point I have to deal with the fact that no matter what I do, I won't be approved by everyone. For some, I'll be flawed, not intelligent enough, not insightful enough, not articulate enough, or not creative enough. Either I keep running like a squirrel in a wheel or I abandon this ridiculous and self-harming quest. Jumping off the wheel still hurts and the critical feedback from others after I've worked so hard still exerts its power on me, but it doesn't have to overpower me. Slowly moving forward and allowing myself to be disapproved by others is what the journey is truly about. This is another road toward freedom.