Personal Meditation No. 101

"Life is internal conflicts masquerading as external conflicts."

Embrace the Within.

I have a lot of problems with social media. A lot of it stems from growing and making mistakes as I grow. I went through a rough patch with preaching the good word of libertarianism that saw me get into heated discussions with many folks from my past. I have since mellowed on my philosophy and taken a more action-based approach to freedom rather than a confrontational approach. But, I really did need that confrontational approach at the time as do many folks that come to realize that a lot of what we learned, what we knew, what we believed need to be unlearned, unknown, and disbelieved. There is a lot to unpack when you start down a path of freedom. Some folks stop with being against something, however, that just seems like defining yourself in negation, always being the voice to the contrary. I prefer the path of my past few years of being for something. I think that has made all the difference.

So, it did my heart good to see so many folks that either don’t pay attention to what I said and say or folks that tolerate despite my failings or people that are just kind inside this world that is not that wished me another happy birthday this year. It doesn’t go unnoticed. We’re all dealing with a lot of conflicts and the folks I still follow look like they’re working through those conflicts. I enjoy seeing those stories of both triumph and struggle. I think folks need to know that we’re not always winning our battles, BUT we’re still battling. We’re not going back, giving up, or quitting the field.

I am celebrating winning conflicts over myself every day. If it’s expanding and growing my sustainability on the plantation, if it’s remembering to work out every day, if it’s keeping the ills of alcohol from my life, if it’s practicing tapping away here every morning, if it’s remembering to love life and all its complexities, if it’s being a husband and parent that speaks from a place of care, if it’s teaching the importance of the Hero’s Journey and influence . . . whatever it may be that I’m struggling to do better, be better, and feel better. Those internal conflicts are celebrations that I am still around to do those things. I am still here to fight those battles.

So, if you love me, hate me, tolerate me, or you’re just being nice. None of those things are going to change my journey. BUT I do enjoy you coming along for the ride. And I enjoy you letting me tag along with your journey as well.

Have the day you want. I hope you find whatever you’re looking for.

#ThinkBetter #BeBetter #NoGodsNoMasters #MyBodyMyChoice #MakeYourselfGreatAgain

Personal Meditation No. 100

“Your beliefs are your actions. What you say is just what you think.”

Embrace the Within.

Into every life a little rain must fall. My response to the rain is a lot more important than the rain itself. I get to choose whether that rain is going to positively impact my day, negatively impact my day, or have no meaningful impact on my day. Every experience we have the pleasure of encountering each day can get a reaction or a response.

Reactions are trained and involuntary. We’ve built up our reactions over time by embracing ways at interacting with our life. Our reactions do not require any conscious thought. It’s our brain on autopilot doing what it’s always done.

Responses take thought. Responses require a pause. And the great things about responses is that they can retrain reactions. I get to change my brain’s autopilot by conditioning it to respond and react differently. That’s the great thing about the brain. The brain can always change.

I just have to decide that I want my brain to change. I have to decide to make that change from reacting and move into responding. My reactions, my responses, my actions are my beliefs. So, I have the control of choosing how I react, how I respond, how I act among all the challenges in the journey of life.

Do I always make the best choices? Of course not. I’m human like everyone else. But I don’t need to dwell on the bad choices. I can just look at them as growth and aspire to do better the next time. We all get to choose how we interact with life. And none of us are experts. Some of us are just trying.

Have the day you want. I hope you find whatever you’re looking for.

#ThinkBetter #BeBetter #NoGodsNoMasters #MyBodyMyChoice #MakeYourselfGreatAgain