Great books help you change your perspective on life. They provide you with insights, arouse your levels of curiosity and sometimes drag you down different rabbit holes, which you wouldn’t have dared to imagine they existed.
On my quest to quenching my thirst and broadening my knowledge for spirituality, I came across an absolutely amazing poem that I’d like to share with you.
It goes like this:
Photo credit: Image by Psisaa from Dreamstime
There’s a Hole in My Sidewalk: The Romance of Self-Discovery
by Portia Nelson
“I walk down the street.
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I fall in. I am lost. I am helpless.
It isn’t my fault.
It takes forever to find a way out.
__
I walk down the same street.
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I still don’t see it. I fall in again.
I can’t believe I am in the same place.
It isn’t my fault.
It still takes a long time to get out.
__
I walk down the same street.
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I see it there, I still fall in.
It’s habit. It’s my fault. I know where I am.
I get out immediately.
__
I walk down the same street.
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I walk around it.
__
I walk down a different street.“
The Power of Responsibility
We live in challenging times and a lot of people are falling victim to mental health disorders and diseases. Psychiatrists are booked for months and years ahead while seemingly more and more people turn to outside factors to get help.
Challenging times call for clear heads, value-driven priorities, creativity, better collaboration and bold decisions.
Humans have forgotten how powerful they are.
We’ve been conditioned over the years to look for extrinsic, often materialistic things that make us feel worthy, valuable, loving or happy. After the Second World War the ‘program’ has become more intrusive and indistinguishable, cleverly designed to hijack our subconscious mind and move us into doing things without thinking clearly.
The media and advertising companies along with fellow marketing consultants have done an excellent job to indoctrinate the human soul and further the illusion of separateness. Individuality especially in Western societies has been put on a pedestal, turning once loving communities into empty entities made up of characters running shoeless, clueless in a society that has lost connection to the greater good and the all-encompassing source of light.
It’s time to take your power back.
Turn off your TV, leave the phone on your desk and get out into nature. Get back control over your life and more importantly, your thoughts. Pay close attention to the inner chatter as it will highlight the things you’ve become so addicted to.
As you start listening to your inner voice and distance yourself from the outer world, you will notice a lot of strange things about yourself. It’s a process. Don’t be harsh on yourself. Years of junk and cluttered thoughts take a bit of time to unwind. Be patient.
True healing always comes from the inside. You’re always one decision away from feeling fulfilled and in control of your life.
No drug on this planet can give you that high.
No government can give you that feeling of safety and security you can give yourself by regaining trust into your inner strength.
No external factors, remedies, doctors, mentors, etc. can give you inner peace. It’s something you give to yourself.
You accomplish all this by taking full responsibility.
This in turn enables you to navigate the most dangerous waters and more importantly, it allows you to enjoy the game on this planet. And when your game is over, you can at least say that you played it YOUR way.
Ready to pay a little more attention to your sidewalk?
Originally published on my blog at StrengthInBusiness.com.
Podcast version at StrengthInBusiness.com
Fantastic read!
Over the last few years I have given up and changed a lot of things in my life that society deems "essential". It hasn't always been easy but I have definitely been happier. I do find some of the sense of community and a connection to the greater good here in the Hive ecosystem. Out in the physical world? Not so much right now. Hopefully that will start to change and I will find a way to contribute to that change. :)
@oldmans the most important thing is that you are happy,forget what the society thinks or say,your happiness is more important....
Yeah, I'd felt things weren't right and there had to be a better way for a long time. Not sure I have found the perfect panacea but I am definitely a happier oldmans. ;)
Thank you for sharing your transformational story @oldmans. Kudos to you for having the guts to change and listen to your inner calling. While pursuing my corporate career there was one component that I was kind of ignoring and that's diving deeper into the spiritual realm. Once I gave myself permission to do that not only did my level of perception sharpen tremendously but my success in business and investing has skyrocketed.
And remember, we (you, me, "us" as a collective) create our physical world. Whether we choose to play this 'video game' driven by fear or full of joy & fulfillment, is totally up to us.
Being close to retirement it was a calculated decision for me to totally uproot my life but change was needed. Now with some retirement benefits kicking in I am more comfortable, at least in a month to month sense. Hoping Hive and blockchain tech. may make that even better. :)
That sounds fantastic @oldmans. Enjoy what you love doing to the max. And yes, I do see tremendous potential in blockchain technology and decentralized platforms such as Hive. Looking forward to hearing good stuff from you going forward ;)
Nothing is as sweet as enjoying your retirement after working so hard for years,I am happy for you and I wish you the best of luck @oldmans
Thank you! I appreciate the well wishes. :)
Wow I wish you a great retirement and you will keep enjoying it as long as the blockhain keeps getting better @oldmans
Thank you! And if it doesn't work out for me I can always leave it to my kids. :)
That poem's always been a favourite of mine for a long time. Nice to be reminded of it again.
It's phenomenal and super deep. Glad it brought good memories back ;)
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