.
Most of us lose our ability to observe
the world directly along with our
roller skates and baseball gloves.
The older we grow, the harder it gets
to see our surroundings in detail.
This has less to do with declining
eyesight than with the security zone
so many of us create to protect ourselves
from surprises.
The ability to muffle anxiety feels like
a perk of adulthood.
We cut a Faustian deal: in return for
not being so anxious all the time, we
agree to tune down our whole nervous
system.
As a result, our powers of
observation decline along with our
sense of smell, taste, and hearing.
~ Ralph Keyes
.
September 10th, 2023 at 1:27 pm
This is relevant to me at this moment. I seem to be feeling anxious for no obvious reason and not sure of how to do this later stage of my life. I feel the fear of the unknown and am tempted to ‘find a purpose or something to ‘ yet this feels like I’m doing it for the sake of it and in truth it is distraction. Sitting and allowing the feeling of vulnerability seems to help somehow, no answers but acceptance is better than avoidance – aka the garden of numb!
September 10th, 2023 at 2:06 pm
Hey Ali.
There’s a book I found recently which you might find interesting: Letting Go: The Pathway of Surrender by David R. Hawkins (Hay House, 2012), which basically argues that it’s not our feelings that distress us but our resistance to them.
“Letting go involves being aware of a feeling, letting it come up, staying with it, and letting it run its course without wanting to make it different or do anything about it. It means simply to let the feeling be there and focus on letting out the energy behind it.… Let go of wanting to resist the feeling. It is resistance that keeps the feeling going.”
In other words, yet another control issue.
September 10th, 2023 at 2:23 pm
Thankyou Steve. Shall get it. Control issues are everywhere and I need simple instructions on ‘how to’…which I may say, you are especially good at doing 🙂
September 10th, 2023 at 3:39 pm
Thanks, Ali. We teach what we want to learn. 😉