I don’t…I can’t…Do our fantasies keep us from being healthy?
Have you ever noticed that you’ve inadvertently created a fantasy world in which you follow certain rules? Some of those rules may start with I don’t. For instance, I don’t go to football games. I don’t take taxis. I don’t ride the subway. I don’t mix my groups of friends. I don’t make left hand turns in my car.
Or maybe we go a step further and say I can’t. I can’t stay up past 9. I can’t leave work before 6pm. I can’t learn to ski. I can’t fly in a small plane. I can’t give up my mom’s homemade dinner rolls. I can’t give up the handmade pasta at my favorite restaurant. I can’t give up my grandmother’s cherry pie.
I don’t… I can’t ….. Why do these fantasies become our reality? I’m guessing that most of us make these rules so we will feel safe. We probably don’t even realize that we’ve restricted ourselves until life throws us a curve and the only way to get home from the airport is a taxi. At that point, we recognize we must make a choice. We can choose to stay on an airport couch until other transportation is available, or we can move past our self-imposed limitation.
If you’re tired, hungry, and ready to be at home, a taxi ride may not seem too ominous. I’ve noticed that when I have to shift, I often find that I’m more comfortable than I thought I would be. I’ve finally learned to be grateful for those circumstances that put me in a position to challenge my self-imposed limitations.
After I started writing this post, I took a lunch break to attend a lecture by Dr. Eben Alexander III, the author of “Proof of Heaven”. As I listened, I recognized that he was describing the same phenomenon, but on a much grander scale. Dr. Alexander describes our brains as filters of consciousness as opposed to the place where consciousness begins. Our brains filter through the tiny bit of consciousness we’re willing to experience, but he says that what’s available to us is much greater. He also postulates that there is much to healing we do not understand that is beyond the physical, rational, and emotional. It seemed that he shared all of this in gratitude for his journey through coma – not so much his gratitude for full recovery, as for the journey itself.
It seems that many of us only recognize our journey in retrospect instead of embracing it in the moment. I want to have a full, adventurous, exciting journey to look back on. I can facilitate that by embracing adventure, excitement, and healthy physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual choices in each moment. This thought excites and motivates me to give up my self-limiting fantasies, embrace my fear, and live each moment to the fullest.
Want to join me?
