Thursday, October 21, 2010

The American Reaction: Getting a Grip on Awakening In Times of Rapid Changes

It's become almost a way of life as much as the technologies we buy and use. And now that I notice it, I feel I want to say something about it. I call it The American Reaction. It's so common in almost everywhere you go: workplace, media, home, schools, but mostly media-that omnipresent entity that has now become US and not THEM. But what do I mean by The American Reaction? I began to notice something in my conversations with people that struck me as both disappointing and frustrating. At first, I thought I was having candid discussions about life matters in the teacher staff rooms, on the phones with friends long distance, and strangers in public. I didn't see it at first but now I do and perhaps you do too. It's this kind of commentary that reflects people's true feelings about what's happening in the world. Most of their words express thoughts and ideas about changes and even youth today. You know what I'm saying: "Young folks today" conversations abound. Political dissent over coffee and bagel. Religious criticisms at a local bar with a strange patron. And the most popular topic: CELEBRITIES. No matter where you go, Celebrity confessions pops up at some point and time. Once I began to notice I was having that kind of discussion-this reaction to world events and changes-I began to feel a sort of emptiness and helplessness as though I had lost a friend or something precious. I saw that most people now were living with the American Reaction in their hearts. I heard deep from within that they know what to do and yet their lives was filled a lot of 'doing.' They watch the TV, read the papers, listen to the radio, and neighbors, church members, co-workers, teachers, and friends for the information, or news. And then it happens as natural as breathing: "No way!" "Are you serious?" "I don't know what's going on these days" and here's my favorite "The children of today..." That is one of the most common talks and gets a lot of reactions. And this American Reaction I speak of is only our awakening. And our new awakening is simply a manifestation of our rapid growth & development of an identity on levels unseen in this human history. Could our reaction be an aspect of this new awakening we are experiencing on mass levels? Could it be just our wake-up call in a dream of our making? Could it be a transitory phase of mass ignorance? Let's be honest: There is SO MUCH happening in our world, it is very difficult to keep up with a lot it, so naturally a lot will be missed and a lot we just don't know. But do we really need to know a lot of that stuff? Because we don't know about it, you can see how our reactive behavior becomes a part of our lifestyle, and how it is becoming 'food for action.' And as I began to see it more and more, I walked away feeling this 'gap' inside as though I was stuck in a human-made tornado in a bottle. 'Okay that was great! Now what do we do now?,' I would ask myself walking away from such conversational highs. I didn't know what to do. I had to tend to business as usual. I had my own challenges. What could I say? What can I say? And that is what this American Reaction thing is about: after you have gotten pissed off at the world, the Presidents, your boss, the new restricive laws, the politics, the religions, the wars, the conspiracies, THEN WHAT? What do you do? And that is why I'm writing this blog. Are you stuck in the American Reaction? Are you tired of hearing about this and that and feeling emptiness and hopelessness? Are you feeling depressed, angry, or anxious about things in your life? other people's lives? Maybe there is another of looking at it. Maybe I don't see it right now. How do you feel about this? What do you think about that? It's not that difficult to get people to become street commentators about what's going on in the world. Just get a camera and a microphone. Media does it all the time. Oh, and YouTube. Robert Fritz in his bestselling book, The Path of Least Resistance: "Most people think that if you move from reacting against the circumstances you are in to responding to the circumstances you are in, you have made progress. Society itself has the goal of people responding appropriately to norms, manners, rules, ideals, common wisdom, and so on. While reacting seems different from responding, the causal power is exactly the same: the circumstances." Fritz believes when we are reacting to circumstances we are not creating. We believe circumstances dominate our lives. So we never truly create what matters because we are reacting to what is rather create what we want. And in America, there is a dominant cultural paradoxical belief: we create our own destinies & we don't create our lives-certain powers that be are in control, and so we have no choice but to go along and yet if we work hard enough we can create the 'best life.' Our reaction represents no choices, no freedom, and so we become ignorant of our power, and helpless members of a godless race. But I don't buy it. I am not going to live in the American Reaction even though its becoming more commonplace. I am not going to sit by and simply comment on world events or celebrity-talk any longer. If people want to do that, and it makes them feel good, then fine. There is a whole market for commentatorism. I'm watching fragments of events each day now but more importantly, I'm noticing my body as I listen and watch those events. How does my body feel as I hear the latest news? What happens inside my mind? What emotions are present? Unplugging from a lot of stuff 'out there' and plugging more to what's 'in here' is part of the awakening. That's promising. And refreshing to know!

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