many people seem to live life in constant denial of reality. they go to work and do things they feel they have to, all the while dreaming of something better. during the day, they long for the evening, during the evening, they long for the weekend. at the weekend, they escape. they dive head-first into a high, only to feel more empty on monday morning than ever before. and so, a large part of the week goes by entirely without being lived. life is suffered. life is endured. during those five days of grinning and bearing it, life may be many things, but lived is not one of them. the reality of the situation is suppressed, until the senses are so numb, that not even the most extravagant escape at the weekend is able to register any more.
such a situation often goes back to "not knowing why I am doing this". when not even a scrap of meaning can be found in the everyday job, there is no reason to be with it, to feel what is going on, to live it. and so, the only wish becomes for working hours to be over and escaping into "feeling myself again". who is it who is going to the day job then, if I may ask?
meaning is a beautiful thing. it can be found in the most unlikely places, if only a little effort is put into looking. what are my core values? what is truly important to my soul? in the answers to these questions lies the long-desired glimmer of hope. for the first time in a while, something feels important. not because of someone or something else, it just does. and that is it, the gateway into the present moment. into actually living life instead of letting it pass you by.
if you start asking these questions, you add depth to your experience. you delve into things and uncover what lies beneath the surface. you begin to grasp the entirety instead of remaining eternally superficial. and suddenly, you realise there is so much more to everything, you want to explore it all before you run out of time.
that boring job? you remember you chose it because you would meet people every day, and you have a deep but almost forgotten interest in seeing into the experiences of people from all walks of life. so you start asking them little questions that create connection and fall right back in love with your job.
that horrible manager? you realise their aim was probably never to make your life miserable, but that they have issues of their own. and that you went into your profession for very carefully selected reasons. and maybe, it was time to look for a new employer.
that trade you never really liked but took up because it seemed like a sensible thing to do? you remember there was another one on the list that you discarded because it wasn't feasible at the time. and upon closer inspection, you discover that the situation has changed entirely and it is now within your reach.
whatever the exact details, life is happening all the time. it goes by, and if it is not appreciated in the moment, it will be over before we ever get around to living it.
it's time to stop escaping life. it's time to actually live life.
Comments