Something to Think About

The creativeness of our hearts fools our minds into thinking that we are all on a stage, that we are all actors in a great big screen play, all waiting for that big scene; with the big bangs and an eternal line/quote that will ensure our own celluloid/historical relevance. But we couldn't be further from the truth, the writings of one man, mythical or historical it doesn't matter, ensured that I can never look for my Bruce Willis moment.

Lao Tzu is great for being so simple; his greatness is in his ordinary existence; respecting nature, surrendering to nature. Knowing Lao Tzu means that I reconcile everything I dream with the reality that I will never be happier than if I was sitting alone on a rock watching a slow moving stream. Dreaming to be something or someone bigger will invariably mean that I am auditioning for just another fictitious ‘Hollywood' part.

Why is this so? Because in smallness we become great, in anonymity will become known, by staying at the rear we are forced to the front. There are two speeds that we endure as human beings on this earth...one is the world's; where everything seems connected and the second is the earth's speed; nature, where we as individuals connect to the earth itself. They can be summarized as Hollywood and the stream.

...

Therefore, the Sage wants to remain behind,

But finds himself at the head of others;

...

Lao Tzu (TTC 7)

At this point it is easy to see the dual illusion that our mind will start to play, for example, "I am being humble, so it is time to move to the front.' And this is where thinking takes over from acting, not Hollywood acting, but the living type. In fact I suggest that all thoughts are nothing more than pictures that we keep in a photo album; we've been there, we were living, and for some reason we need a picture to prove it.

Could it be true? Could our actions actually be our true reality and our thoughts be mere photographs that we take in our mind to assure ourselves that we are in control? Could it be that no matter what we think, plan or devise for ourselves, it is irrelevant to our ever-developing reality and that no matter what I tell someone that I may want or need, there is always a chance that I will do or become the exact opposite?

What would happen if we stopped all this thinking and got down to just doing? For starters I believe the Hollywood auditions would instantly stop; whether you are auditioning for the role of successful, loving, sober father/husband of two perfect sporting/academic children or if you are auditioning to save the world either scientifically or philosophically with the next ‘big Oprah moment', they would all stop.

We are taught from a very young age that it is essential that we think our way through our day-to-day problems; that we devise solutions to the big and small issues that we face each day. Whether it is our parents dramatically pointing a finger at their head the first time we put a ball through a window or the dread of receiving our first big fat math text at school, the message is the same...it is now time to think.

Now's the time to think, think, think, think

When you have a problem...you must think

Look at all the clues...like the super sleuths' do

And just think, think, think!

My Friends Tigger and Pooh (Disney)

Ironically the same thing that causes us to start thinking in the first place may be the same thing that prevents us from stopping...fear. The fear of being ‘caught out' by our peers or even family members is enough to paralyse the most capable individual. It may surprise a lot of people but the most powerful learning statement that I know of, whether you are five or fifty years old...is ‘I don't know'.

Much like the climbing of the greatest mountain starts at the bottom, we must first acknowledge that we know nothing before we can start to attain anything. Thoughts, synonymous with anticipation and planning stop us from discovering new things about ourselves and others. Some people call them walls or barriers, but in reality we play a game with our peers that attempts to have us on the front foot of all our interactions.

The fact is that nothing beats experience/living, whether you are about to make your first coffee for a customer in a busy café or you're about to represents your first client after six years of law school; the feeling is always the same...you're scared out of your skin. I imagine that at the end of a life...we feel the same as we did after three months at the new job; ‘what was I so worried about?'

If we stopped thinking and stopped acting in roles that we think our peers want to see us in, I believe that we would quite simply astound ourselves. When we stop trying to impress, stop trying to have the right answer instead of our answer...we expose ourselves to something much more powerful than embarrassment...we are indeed learning. How we feel, although not as powerful or pleasant, may just be what really matters.

It's not a case of doing whats right,

It's just the way I feel that matters.

...

It's not a case of telling the truth,

Some lines just fit the situation.

Play for Today (The Cure)

Regularly we remind each other that at the end of our term we will not want to talk about how many hours we worked, how much money we had or how many cars we had...we are left with the simple desire to be close to the ones that we love. If we stopped thinking about this grand revelation and started living it each day, I am certain that we would realise that life is certainly not an audition, not even a dress rehearsal, it is simply...now.