Have you ever had a litany of undesirable experiences? You feel as if your mind is
a reservoir of thoughts and emotion – filled to capacity after a heart-rending,
traumatic typhoon. Something very, very distressing has just happened and you don’t
know if the psychological dam is going to break: can it hold? For many, the answer is
no: the subsequent descent into failure is the response. This disappointing life does
not have to take the form of a derelict in the streets begging for his existence. It can
take the form of wage slavery: acquiescence.
Your pure potential is placed in that special place called “tomorrow,” I will get to
Europe and paint tomorrow, I will start that business tomorrow, I will get my MBA
tomorrow, etc. Sadly: there is no next morning, there is only today. Herein lies the
great dilemma for all of us, I believe. When we leave the confines of our familial
cocoon, few people can or are willing to tell us the truth about reality: about life.
Existence, when we finally come to terms with its reality at about twenty or so, is
shocking and terrifying. We quickly learn it is not easy: it is filled with pitfalls that
damage us and weaken our resolve. Why is it so, you may ask? This is because life is
not just one point in time from beginning to end: it is dynamic and ephemeral. Many
people, especially our loved ones, want us to “play it safe,” get a fairly decent
education, get a form of money – a job, get an adequate husband or wife, retire and
enjoy! “Enjoy what?” you may ask, “Fool, your retirement years!” Now, how many
taut, healthy, intelligent and happy sixty-year-olds do you know, hmm, not many you