General Information
It is from within the soul that we create the energy to live our lives. This soul-energy is called the human will. Our body can sense a need to act. Our mind can decide upon the action to be taken. But until the soul generates the will to act, generally nothing will happen. I say generally because there is an exception. We do go on autopilot from time to time and act out of shear repetition. These automatic responses are soul-less. We just do them. There is no real engagement or feeling involved. In fact, we do our best to numb ourselves to any feeling so that our responses are unhindered by our emotions. This is a necessary skill for life in a complex world.
However, this autopilot comes at a cost. When we begin to apply this skill too broadly in our lives, we become increasingly soul-less. We lose touch with our innermost life. We eliminate the complications that emotions bring to our relationships and life situations. As we allow autopilot to control more and more of our lives, we begin to feel less and less. We may feel that we are just “going through the motions.” We experience no joy or hope in our everyday lives. Love and trust begin to ebb and we begin to feel very alone. Ultimately, we become a machine. The other word for this is “Burnout.”
A vacation, meaning to temporarily vacate our day-to-day life, gives us the opportunity to feel once again. The change in scenery and/or routine forces us off autopilot. We refocus on the people and situations that surround us. We engage the world afresh and reap the benefits of feeling and choosing and doing with joy and hope. Life seeps back into the soul-less corners of our lives and be renew our acquaintance with our inner self. We feel the energy that comes from laughter and joy warming the cold limbs of our lives. We rediscover awe and wonder filling the void that has taken over our mind. The stories come alive again. The energy to live, laugh, and love returns. Life becomes good again.
And, if we are attentive, we will be able to reassess just how much autopilot we need when we return to our day-to-day lives and keep it to a minimum. But just in case, there will be another vacation when we need it to remind ourselves about what is truly important in life.
However, this autopilot comes at a cost. When we begin to apply this skill too broadly in our lives, we become increasingly soul-less. We lose touch with our innermost life. We eliminate the complications that emotions bring to our relationships and life situations. As we allow autopilot to control more and more of our lives, we begin to feel less and less. We may feel that we are just “going through the motions.” We experience no joy or hope in our everyday lives. Love and trust begin to ebb and we begin to feel very alone. Ultimately, we become a machine. The other word for this is “Burnout.”
A vacation, meaning to temporarily vacate our day-to-day life, gives us the opportunity to feel once again. The change in scenery and/or routine forces us off autopilot. We refocus on the people and situations that surround us. We engage the world afresh and reap the benefits of feeling and choosing and doing with joy and hope. Life seeps back into the soul-less corners of our lives and be renew our acquaintance with our inner self. We feel the energy that comes from laughter and joy warming the cold limbs of our lives. We rediscover awe and wonder filling the void that has taken over our mind. The stories come alive again. The energy to live, laugh, and love returns. Life becomes good again.
And, if we are attentive, we will be able to reassess just how much autopilot we need when we return to our day-to-day lives and keep it to a minimum. But just in case, there will be another vacation when we need it to remind ourselves about what is truly important in life.
TIPS
My tip today is to Rage Against the Machine that you have become.
Break the routine in your life. Force yourself off autopilot. You may fear that you have forgotten how to fly that plane, but it will come back to you. Allow the life-giving feelings to begin to course through your soul. Fear, exhilaration, awe, and relief will fill the void that you did not even know you had.
Do and think differently. Challenge your most cherished ways of doing things and your most deeply held convictions. Shine the light of today on the routines and beliefs of yesterday. Let in the fresh air of a new morning so that the stale air of an autopiloted doing and understanding can be refreshed or replaced. If new ways or beliefs emerge, take them with you back into the day-to-day world.
Feel! Most importantly, let yourself feel. Emotions cannot harm you. You do not have to act on them. Just let them course through your soul. Let them fill the reservoirs of vitality from which you draw your energy. Let go of those that drain you. Hold on to those that fill you. Celebrate the symphony of life that is now playing in your soul.
Break the routine in your life. Force yourself off autopilot. You may fear that you have forgotten how to fly that plane, but it will come back to you. Allow the life-giving feelings to begin to course through your soul. Fear, exhilaration, awe, and relief will fill the void that you did not even know you had.
Do and think differently. Challenge your most cherished ways of doing things and your most deeply held convictions. Shine the light of today on the routines and beliefs of yesterday. Let in the fresh air of a new morning so that the stale air of an autopiloted doing and understanding can be refreshed or replaced. If new ways or beliefs emerge, take them with you back into the day-to-day world.
Feel! Most importantly, let yourself feel. Emotions cannot harm you. You do not have to act on them. Just let them course through your soul. Let them fill the reservoirs of vitality from which you draw your energy. Let go of those that drain you. Hold on to those that fill you. Celebrate the symphony of life that is now playing in your soul.
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