| If you
are stressed by a plane deadline, mad at your
boss,concerned about your kids, part of you is
not "there", and you are more likely to
make matters worse,whatever action you take, as a
result. Anytime I catch myself growling inside
about something not EVEN close to where I am and
what I am doing, I've learned to pay close
attention to my actions that day, trying to be a
little more deliberate and conservative in how
much I do. While we may not be able to put off
our responsibilities, it sure helps to cut down
on the self imposed friction that selfish
thinking will surely bring to the unfocused. Letting go of concern for your own
welfare is not a natural ability, except maybe to
mothers with infants who understand immediately
that caring and giving for that child is priority
one. Some parents "get it", some do
not, but what you truly have to give a child
requires that you place it's concerns and needs
above your own. The "wisdom that
appears" comes back manyfold as any real
parent knows. When you really think about it,
look at the way people handle their lives, you
can see this thread in all things. Those who's
egos affect their thinking have excessive
friction and misery in their lives and those who
dedicate themselves to something higher than
their own glorification seem happier and more
content with themselves, less threatened by the
things they can not and do not seek to control.
"Immature strategy is
often the cause of grief" is yet another
little pearl of wisdom from that Musashai book
I've carried in my briefcase for more than 15
years, and the casualities of immature strategy
are rampant in todays society, as institutions
and families crumble and struggle under the load
of pressure to do more with less, using
technology and automation to meet deadlines and
quotas. Stress is thick in the enviroment; the
traffic,the cube farms, the schools and the
soccer fields......too many trying to do too
much with too little and the pressure of time
running through all of it. Stress is an over reaction to an intangible
pressure with very real consequences reflected
statistically and constantly in our lives.
Stress and our reaction to it
need to be recognized and refined, and the best
way I have found to do that is by seeking
silence; taking pause, daily, to just sit and
breathe,trying to relax the mind and let go of
the details. I've got one of those type A
personalities, so I never really succeed at
meditation, but i do achieve a re-equilibration
of sorts, feeling more balanced and better
prepared to accept the day. In difficult
situations, periods of high travel and stress, I
rely on this more, using yoga stretches to
improve my circulation and release tension in my
back and neck. I have a physical reaction of
yawning when I do yoga, and it is like a cloud of
fatigue being released when it occurs, very
rejuvenating. When things are going wrong, just
stopping the way you're reacting for a few
minutes (ie,doing nothing, just sitting as still
as possible and breathing deeply and calmly) and
collecting yourself will always improve your
results.
Every problem requires the
clarity of correct observation to "see"
the solution. We have been pushed so hard for so
long that we cannot truly "see" that at
least part of every problem is our reaction to
it. What we know first and foremost is how it's
affecting us; we see only the symptoms, we feel
the consequences. When we let go of our need to
react, when we stop looking through the eyes of
our ego's, we get that clarity of observation and
"see" the right path to take.
"Peoples of zee
wurld,relax" Tom Robbins
8/22/2000
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