If we are MiNdFuL(nEsS), we can pay attention to our thinking and make changes to our thoughts (and thought processes) over a fairly short period of time. Making changes to our thinking can lead us towards an entirely new life.
Being ‘mindful’ is detaching yourself emotionally from - and becoming an observer to - the thoughts in your head that seem to originate uncontrollably from deep within your psyche. It takes a bit of practice. But, anyone that commits to the act of mindfulness, even for a week, says they notice an immediate change in their thinking.
More specifically, by observing our thoughts and committing to change, we can:
- Stop beating ourselves up so much.
- Attain a more positive outlook on life.
- Change our associations so that they no longer affect us the way they once did.
- *We can change reality with our change in thinking.
That’s, because, our reality is our thoughts. And, this is the main point we will try to get to with this essay. “You are what you think.”
Your thoughts control your emotions. And, both your thoughts and emotions, control your actions. Everything originates from thought. Therefore, it’s obvious that mindfulness can be used as a tool for change in life. If we are repeating negative actions and feeling the same old emptiness, we can attack the source of these 2 things by taking an unattached observation of our thoughts.
First, let’s take a look at a basic feature of our mind’s ability to think and create reality. Remember, we are self-aware. We are conscious. That means, not only can we use our mind to label and define that which we experience, we can also be aware of our mind’s doing so. It’s as if we are somehow unattached to the actual process of living and breathing. When we take on the role of the observer, using the intuitive part of us that knows emotions are always temporary, we can step outside of ourselves and sort of see life as a movie being played out before our eyes.
It’s in this area of observation/existing that I believe we define who we are. I might observe myself acting like a child on a rare occasion in life. After a disagreement, maybe I lashed out like an entitled and spoiled baby.
If I take a step back from that, I can see myself emotionally feeling how a child feels on more than a rare occasion. I’d make the determination that, as the ‘baby-mentality’ went from thought to feeling to action, I must’ve been doing a fairly good job at stopping the process in the emotional phase.
So, is there a part of me that still has an uncontrollable need to resort to the mentality of a baby? Well, yes, there is. But, the fact that I am able to observe this happening (and observe this happening less and less over time), means that I (my true self) am going to identify with the knowing observer and not the immature baby. And, it’s sort of a compounding form of growth where, the more I identify with the maturity and wisdom, the more I become less and less like the child.
Again, we can control our own reality by unattaching ourselves from habitual, negative thinking habits. Once we’ve pinpointed the thoughts that are taking up space in our mind for no good reason, we can begin to align our perspective of the world with the identity of the person we’d like to become.
We all deserve happiness. And, we all have the ability to look at life (and the world around us) through the lens of gratitude (through the ‘bright side’). So, we can choose how we define happiness. And, if something in our lives is going against this definition, we can set an appropriate goal and take action towards achieving it.
It’s all so simple. The hardest part may be successfully unattaching yourself emotionally from your thoughts. It’s about awareness and observation. So, you can work on the change over time. The observer must establish ‘himself’ as an unbiased representation of your ‘higher self’, of the truth. If there is a part of you that is willing to stand ‘above’, and ‘judge’ the constant flow of thought in your mind, well, we better hope that this part of us is working properly.
The reason this part of the process can give us trouble, is because our thoughts can actually work against us. The observer must be sure he is completely unattached to the thought(s). One way to be sure we have done this is to properly define the word ‘association’, which I will begin to do in the next paragraph.
Everything we see, touch and feel on this Earth - in our minds - that person, place or thing (or event) has an ‘association’ along with it. Depending on how emotionally affected you are by the person, place or thing, the association may deepen and become stronger. Your mind automatically creates this association before, during and after the experience you are having.
This is how we know what we are dealing with, and how we remember. It’s a tool of the brain that is undervalued, overlooked and, at times, abused by people that might want something from us (think television ‘programming’, and the many associations we’ve made about companies because of their advertisements).
As opposed to us just fondling around in the darkness, our mind has been equipped with the ability to associate. We may go into a situation the first time and make a few mistakes because we were unfamiliar with the specific components of our reality at that time. Years later, when it’s time to try again, it’s our associations we will count on to do better and complete the task.
When we are choosing between 2 women (or men) at the bar, deciding whether to take the back roads home from work or planning a vacation, we are using our associations to make the most knowledgeable decision. Associations also help us in real time. They can almost be considered the same as our instinct, because they tell us what to think before we think.
Associations are the ideas stored in our brain that allow us to see a person, place, thing or situation for the second time and make a better-informed decision as to how to best handle the experience. I will give a good example in a minute.
It’s not just material items, either. We can remember the material item for exactly what it is and, along with that, associate a personalized, overall idea about the item. Do we prefer the style? What shape is it? Do I have any history with this object? How did it make me feel?
The association becomes a ‘whole package’ to us. At first, we are only going off what we’ve been taught about the ‘object’ by our parents. Then, when we experience the object (or person, or place) for the first time by ourselves, we take the information we have and add it against the new information we’ve gained.
Every time we experience this person, place, event or object, we are adding to the package of our association, until we believe we have painted ourselves a pretty picture. This is why people say, ‘I don’t associate with him anymore’. Because, if someone does us wrong, or if someone is untrustworthy and we can’t seem to ‘figure them out’ (the person is very inconsistent, unreliable and seems to change personalities way too often), well, instead of saying, ‘we hate him’, we can say ‘we don’t associate with him any longer’. People tend to use this phrase when the problem has something to do with their ability to truly get to know the other person.
They are basically saying that the jury is still out, that they don’t have enough evidence to form a proper idea or opinion about the person. Therefore, they refuse to speak bad about them. They’d rather just ‘unassociate’ from them. It’s a very respectable approach. One that should be remembered throughout this essay as I make my way to our final point.
Most of these words (idea, thought, opinion) basically carry the same meaning. I am using the word ‘association’ today, because, it seems to be the one word we use to describe an idea (or a thought) that takes the whole package into account. Associations stick with us.
It’s very typical of human beings to sort of subconsciously celebrate the moment we’ve settled on an association, especially when the association is about something important. Like, for example, if it’s about our daughter’s new boyfriend (someone who, for the sake of my baby girl staying young forever, I’d rather not exist. jk).
But, such is life. And, our lovely daughter told me everything she was willing to tell me about him before dinner. During this time, I began my association. I began to formulate the overall ‘package’ of ideas I was going to use in my association about him.
For me and my daughter, the problem was, this particular association came attached to a few pre-existing ideas. (Ideas that I had to make an effort to avoid using in my association.) One of the thoughts that shot into my head when I started thinking about this poor boy even whispered, “Shoot him on the spot!” to me. So, I knew not to take these ‘pre-existers’ too seriously. But, if I wasn’t careful and thorough, I’d be labeling a fellow human being based upon things that had nothing to do with him.
But, me, being the expert that I am on associations, knew what was going on anyway. Ya’ see, this association, is one that men like me have had to make for hundreds of thousands of years throughout the history of time. Men and women have always reproduced. Daughters typically outlive their fathers. Therefore, at some point, each and every father - that is lucky enough to have a daughter - is going to be faced with this experience and subsequent association.
So, maybe the pre-existing ideas actually come through our DNA? Or, maybe somewhere, subconsciously, I have been pre-judging this young man, and therefore my daughter as well. Maybe I’ve heard other fathers speak about their first introductions to potential son-in-law’s and a few ideas popped into my head that tried to stick.
Regardless, when you get hit with any pre-existing ideas about something, especially something as unpredictable as a human being, it’s your job to be sure they don’t automatically enter the package of the association. You can certainly take history into account. But, remaining open-minded to the possibility that the new experience or person may blow your mind away, and show you something you’ve never thought of before, is a very noble thing to do.
And, if your pre-judgments end up on point and correct, congratulations.
This is a human being, remember. So, there’s a damn good chance that zero of the pre-existing ideas will come to stay with the association. And, the young man deserves a clean slate anyway, doesn’t he? I mean, you remember meeting your wife’s old man, don’t ya’?
To be clear, when I explain this powerful tool of the brain going forward, I will be using an example of an association with a simple, material item - like a computer, for instance. We can associate a few, strong emotions towards a computer if we want to. But, for the most part, a computer only has objective qualities.
What really matters, and what I will drive home towards the end of the essay, is those associations we make that carry strong emotions with them, have long-reaching implications and the ones that are attached directly to our culture, principles and beliefs.
This tool allows us to learn and grow within our reality, as opposed to blindly fondling about in the darkness. The fact that we will have a basis for reality (and all of its individual parts) in our minds allows us the opportunity to organize ideas, make decisions based off the associations we already have and learn from the times our ideas were later found to be wrong.
When we see something a second time, our association allows us quick reference to what we remembered and felt (or, at least what we tried to remember) about the person, place or thing. (For the sake of this essay, I will be referring to ‘people, places and things’ from here on as, simply, ‘object’.)
As an example, I associate the Valley Forge Casino in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania as a place with bad memories, bad energy and negativity. I have my own personal reasons and history behind this association. In fact, I try to reinforce (strengthen) this association consistently and consciously so that I can be sure I never return to this place.
And, nobody should have a problem with that. Nobody should ever try to talk me out of this idea. The association is mine. I may not own the building. (I may not even be allowed inside the damn place!) But, what I do have, is my own personal relationship and idea about the casino, which is pretty cool.
This is an empowering thought you can use for everything within your reality. If your thoughts do, in fact, make up your reality, then you should remember that no one has the right to take those thoughts away from you. And, therefore, no one has the right to alter the reality you have created with your positive thinking and open-mindedness. If they try to enter a negative association into your thoughts, remove yourself from the conversation and move on!
Your ability to think, your ability to associate and define things (objects), gives you the ability to live in control of your reality. You get to form your own opinion about things. And, since everything in this world can be looked at through the ‘window of positivity and happiness’, we really are lucky to have this tool. We can find the ‘silver lining’ in everything we come across. We can hold on to the good, and we can discard the bad.
Now, if someone else associates the VF casino with great energy, with thousands of dollars (which is energy as well) and fancy, happy feelings of bliss, do I have the right to try and force my association upon them? Should I be letting them know how I feel, and trying to talk them out of their relationship with the casino?
Nope. Of course not. I’ve simply broken down the importance of associations and had us agree on the fact that you are, not only in charge and free to think however you please, but also expected to respect the associations of others.
Once again, an association is just another word for thought, really. We think, and it’s the first thing that happens in a series of events as a reaction to a circumstance of reality (next comes emotion and then action).
Again, this is mainly subconscious. But, we are doing this 3-step reaction all day every day, especially when we are faced with a choice. It’s important to get familiar with this process if you are planning to use mindfulness as a tool to alter your reality; thought, feeling, action.
If I am a happy person, that’s mainly because, I am thinking happy thoughts. Yes, being happy has a lot to do with how I physically feel. But, in the end, ‘feeling great’ (or average) alone does not guarantee happiness. We can be feeling great and thinking shit. So, true, sustained happiness depends upon our thinking and the strength of our mentality.
It depends upon our outlook on life. It depends upon how often we are hit with a negative thought. Or, how often we let an opportunity for a positive thought slip right past us. Regardless, it’s our thinking that determines our happiness. This is why you will hear many a guru telling you to ‘manifest’ happiness, even to ‘pretend’ that you are happy until you do if you have to.
The thought is the first step in the 3-step process. If someone does something that throws me off my square, I can say, “Well, that person did such and such and, I got pissed off because of it.” This one’s slightly difficult to put into action. But, I’m going to tell you that, what I just wrote is, in fact, untrue. The reason I got ‘pissed off’ wasn’t because of what the other person did (even if they cut me off in traffic for no reason).
What ‘got me’ to the point of irritation, the emotion of anger, let’s say, was the thought that came prior to the emotion. Remember, it’s thought, feeling, action. So, when I was cut off by the driver, somewhere (subconsciously) I thought, “Getting cut off by another driver is something that is worth getting pissed off about. I know this from experience. I’ve seen other drivers act this way and, because, I’m a bit upset (in other words, ‘unfamiliar with this new emotion’) he got that close to my $20,000 car.”
Hmm. Interesting. Fact is, that’s exactly what happened. Think about it. Two hours later, when you pulled your car into the driveway safe and sound, you might’ve said to yourself, “Damn, I don’t know why I got so pissed off back there by Exit 3. Why did I let that guy get to me so easily?” And, you hop out of the car, almost reminding yourself to ‘never allow things like getting cut off annoy you in the future’.
This is something we could try to be mindful about. It’s a perfect way to practice, especially if you drive a lot. Whenever you have the mental capacity, or time, tell yourself (your true self – meet him or her at the place inside of you where promises are made between your body and your spirit) that you are going to make it a point to work on this whole ‘getting cut off’ situation.
You are not going to go crazy trying to fix such a minor issue in your life. But, just make the little promise. Mean it. I promise you, the next time you even sit down in your car, that promise will, at least, subconsciously make itself known; if not consciously. Then, when you hit the highway, the promise will sink in a bit more.
And, what do you know? The guy slowly rolled his way over into your lane and, your mind was so far ahead of anger, you were literally able to see him coming a quarter mile ahead. (Those that have been through this will laugh when I say, “Damn, the little agitated man inside of me that loves conflict was a tad disappointed that day, as he thought he’d never have a reason to rear his ugly, little head again.”)
To put it a bit more simply, the computer that you are reading this on is not actually a ‘computer’. It’s a lot more than that (to you). To you, because it’s yours and you have a history with it, the computer carries more meaning. You have a stronger association with it.
In comparison, your computer means a lot more to you than it does to me. When you look at the machine, the association that you have in your brain is something that no one will ever be able to match. You could sell your computer 5 years from now, after writing a top seller on it, and the guy who bought it would still never be able to match the personal association you’ve made with it. That person may write 3 best sellers on the machine. It would still never completely ‘match up’.
My point is, we each form our own associations to each of the objects in our reality at our own speed, using our own personal experiences and with our own database of principles, beliefs and attributes. (Heck, some of us don’t even have the same amount of words in our vocabulary as others do, making it even more difficult to connect reality and experience.)
Of course, there are some objective characteristics that we should all share when we define an object. It’s important to use our rationality and be sure we never waver from the core facts of each experience.
After all, it’s still a computer. We have an agreed upon language that we use. And, we have an agreed upon word that we use for this specific object. Once we get past the obvious, objective details (ideas, really) about an object, it’s pretty much fair game from that point out. You still don’t have the right to tell someone else how to associate with something or someone.
I might look at your computer and think, “Yup, that’s a computer.” The association (the idea in my mind that I have about the computer, which is based off my common knowledge of computers) is basically the objective version. Most people would think of that computer in the same way I do.
If asked to describe the computer, or asked to ‘think more’ about the computer, we would all go ahead and begin naming the features, style and parts and call it a day. A stranger might feel less attached to the computer than I do. That’s because I, at least, am interested in the computer’s well-being simply because you are my friend.
But, the association (the idea, the thought) that you have about your computer is unmatched. You may have written a love letter to your wife on this computer. You may have met your best friend at the Best Buy you purchased the computer from.
Therefore, we must always remember that our reality, and all the things that come along with it, is being lived through the many different thought patterns of individuals all across the planet. Meaning, no matter what material things we each hold, no matter what color we are or where we are from, the only thing that matters is our associations.
And, furthermore, if we are, in fact, kind and compassionate to each other at all times - and respectful to each other’s own personal associations and life experiences – well, then, we can help make each other’s association towards human beings in general a bit more appealing.
If someone has a bad taste in their mouth about human beings because of a few bad apples, they may associate every man, woman and child they meet from here on out with the previous ‘bad actors’.
Hopefully, we can all learn to be better associates.
So, in each new experience, we take in information through the 5 senses. Our brain takes this information and processes it. If it’s something we recognize, we typically go ahead and label, associate and define the object for easy reference the next time. Now, this happens on such a micro level that we barely notice it. Our associations begin to work on the subconscious level, which allows for the possibility of a problem. (more on this later)
Associations also allow us to hold on to ourselves as separate from everything else in our reality. “These people are all over there. The sun’s way up in the sky. My parents seem to be doing their own thing. So, here I am. I’m actually alive. I’m actually alone. This isn’t so bad, after all. (Now, if I could only figure out who I was!)”
Imagine the opposite, not having the ability to label, define or associate. I’m talking about operating underneath a constant light in your mind that shines above the path you are on, your own personal road map. And, the opposite would be a pinball inside of a pinball machine.
This ability gives us the opportunity to take step 2 almost entirely out of the equation. As we grow older, and new experiences become less and less (been there, done that), we can begin to look at and go through life with the confidence that our associations are all put together properly. And, if indeed they are, we can experience reality exactly how we are supposed to be experiencing it.
We can plan ahead, call a spade a spade. We can trust that we’ve disassociated from all the necessary negativity. From here, we can dive deeper into life, making new associations the deeper we go.
For example, if we begin to talk a little bit about our ‘spirituality’, and the possibility that we can receive guidance from a ‘higher power’, well, then we better start to talk about our association with God at that point.
If you are interested in associating ‘life as a human being on Earth’ with something meaningful (infinite perhaps), then you would want to be mindful of your existing associations with religion, God, yourself and the universe.
Any man that wishes to ‘know God’ (or himself), must be willing to drop away alllllll of the old, pre-existing ideas he’s ever had about Him. That’s, at least, what I’ve found on my journey (as well as many others I’ve read about.) It does seem, in fact, that I was able to do so over a long period of time. The church, with it’s many different association ‘tactics’, if you will, are very good at making a man think a certain away about an object.
Perhaps, your ‘higher power’ is actually that ‘higher self’ we spoke about earlier. The one that’s decided to be mindful. The one that’s decided to truthfully seek a definition for reality, itself. Remember, not only were you given a lot of ideas as to how you were going to define God growing up, you were also basically told how to define yourself. And, if we are going to consistently unattach, we have to consider redefining the definition we have held about human beings in general. Perhaps, we are much more than what we’ve originally thought.
Same goes for the government. As children, already very susceptible to incorrect association (which is why the pedophiles always drive around with candy and ice cream), we’ve been led down the path with a gentle hand towards what we thought was genuine interest in our growth and well-being. Of course, we associated school and the teachers as something very good, something that we could count on to help us learn and grow.
Little did we know, there were many subliminal ideas being planted in our heads as we gathered in the comfortable space around friends and the adults we’d look up to for years. It started with the American flag, and our ‘pledge of allegiance’ to it. We began to make associations about something so very big, when we were all so very small. As we read through the history books, it was basically screamed to us with a megaphone at every page...
“America the Great. American Heroes. God Bless America.”
Now, of course, some of the associations were spot on. The founding fathers and the constitution were so brilliant and courageous, they had to be remembered and passed down to the following generations. There was a lot of good that America did over the years. And, it certainly made sense that these things were going to be taught to us.
But, for me, a lot of things were happening in the world that were making me question my own associations. I had blindly believed in a lot of things and trusted a lot of different people whom I had never even met. And, as my own, personal ‘awakening’ slowly started taking place, and I admitted to myself over a long, frustrating 3-year period that I had trusted the wrong people all along, I finally got to the point where it was time to ‘restart’.
This is the part of the journey that they call ‘breaking the chains’. The chains they speak of are, in fact, the associations you have made with incorrect or incomplete ideas (data). The hardest part in all of this? That it was your heart that did the trusting. Not only did you trust everything they said as true, you were using your heart to do so. Therefore, when it all came crashing down, it made you think you’d never freely trust again, as if your heart had been broken too much to be fixed again.
Your parents got you going. It’s obvious they trusted the government too. They probably did a good job preparing you for ‘reality’. But, they also ‘took someone’s word for it’. So, as you continued to meet new people and experience new things, you continued to update your definitions and associations. But, the base of your tower of knowledge was built with a deck of playing cards.
As a youngster, we’re told what to think about this or that by our parents. That works for a while, until the fateful day when your Mom and Dad decide to stop making decisions for you. You had been expecting an answer when, instead, she replied to your question by saying, “That’s up to you, honey. If you think (she’s a good person), well, then you should (go for it.)” Or, “If you think (college isn’t the right fit for you), well, then you (shouldn’t apply.)”
At the end of the day, our parents ‘letting go’ of control was our parents allowing us the opportunity to associate and define our own reality. The reason it was scary is because, at that age, maybe we still associated drugs and alcohol with a productive, social activity for a teenager. Maybe we associated the idea of college with something that takes all our money and offers nothing in return. Maybe we associated the idea of driving a vehicle with that of riding a bike.
Either way, we stepped out into the open and began living as a ‘grownup’.
As we grow up, our associations allow us to remain comfortable in our reality. “Oh, yeah. I’ve seen this before.” Or, “Okay, last time I had this feeling, things went wrong. So, now I am on guard.” Each association gets an overall score of good or bad.
But, within the definition, they actually take on meaning to us. They quite literally become what we think they are. That’s us, defining (creating) our reality.
Think of a dog, which relies highly on its sense of smell to associate and figure out exactly what is going on. The dog is much simpler than us. It has certain smells it associates with ‘good’ and it has certain smells it associates with ‘bad’.
With associations, it’s like we have quick access to an old library of ideas in our brain. But, if we are not constantly checking our judgements, keeping an open mind and, at the same time, showing the courage it takes to call something exactly what it is, well, the old library becomes outdated. Keep this up long enough, and stay stuck in a reality that is defined mostly by fear, personal issues and judgements, and you can become the kind of person we see on the news shooting up a group of innocent people.
That’s probably worse-case scenario, anyway. Best case? Your disconnection from reality grows as you consider the people around you the ‘uninformed’ or ‘irrational’. With every turn, what something really is becomes farther and farther away from how you define it. And, as you go along, you’ll subconsciously seek out the like-minded, finding less and less of them in the world.
Eventually, you’ll start mumbling to yourself in public and wearing the same clothes for weeks in a row. You’ll become known simply as, ‘the guy who once admitted to believing that the Earth was flat’. (It might be)
In order to be comfortable in reality, we had to start labeling things for what they were. Early on, in order to survive in the world and properly give ourselves the best chance at success, we had to be confident that we knew our surroundings. And, because the situation called for us to be away from our family for most of the week, an opportunity arose for ‘something’ else to fill in the blanks of what was and wasn’t.
We were raised by the education system.
At first, it mattered less how ‘correct’ you were with your association and more how confident you were about it. As long as, in your mind, you could come across any situation, person or event and feel as though you had been there before (or, feel as though you at least knew what to expect), then you could experience each situation to the fullest.
Any early life situation that produced anxiety and fear was most likely due to the fact that you had not settled on your association about the person, place or event just yet. The feeling was uncomforting. Most likely, the person, place or thing was something that wasn’t going anywhere anytime soon. Yet, you still decided not to consider it.
So, now, we have a group of kids that are actually confident that their associations are correct. We trusted our parents and the teachers. Our parents trusted the government and the teachers.
Maybe you had avoided making an association because you honestly didn’t know what to think about the situation. So, you decided to go through the experience with that little bit of uncertainty and darkness hovering around in your mind. That idea didn’t work out. So, now, you’ve automatically created an association based on the unprepared experience. Because of this little mishap, you’ll now associate associating as something that’s very important to your well-being.
The funny part is, you will certainly have an association about the particular person or thing now, after the fact. You might even blame it for not being easier to understand or define. You might now associate this ‘thing’ with this day. And, that’s an example of how we can get off on the wrong foot with a definition about something.
It takes a while for a person to remove every single chain. Some of our associations remain from our childhood. Some were put there by the television. They may have been put there, in the first place, by a racist and sexist family member. Or, someone that had gotten hurt in the past by the thing that’s being associated. Maybe your Uncle, because of a complete and utter misjudgment on his part decades ago, had a similar, negative experience with the same event that you had decided not to think about today.
So, you both did have a negative experience. But still, at this point, the person, place or thing has done nothing ‘wrong’. And, this is just one, easy example of how associations can be learned, programed (this is what commercial’s do) or based on the individuals own lack of information.
Now, remember, the idea here is knowing your reality. Of course, who wouldn’t want to do that? Know yourself, know those around you and have an idea what to expect. But, there’s another side to it. One that, if not addressed, could lead to the entire human race stopping the path of progression and creativity at a halt.
And, that’s assuming your definitions are up to date, deep enough or immovable. Reality is constantly changing. People are constantly changing. Experiences are changing. And, you and I are changing. Therefore, staying in reality is actually more work than most people think.
There are many parents out there that have held their kids back by holding on to their old associations. Meanwhile, from what I can see, it’s the younger generations that have decided to associate progression and creativity with one, simple word: Infinite.
We can change our reality with our thoughts.
What a powerful thing to consider. It’s like everything else. It takes work and time. But, whether you believe in a God or not, you have to admit; this is an amazing part of being human. And, just because one group of people decided to take advantage of this tool when we were younger, that doesn’t mean we can’t remove the associations and, at the same time, remove them.
It’s going to take some work. First, you have to admit that your associations are out of date. But, that’s not scary at all. It’s actually liberating and exhilarating. We get to move through the world with the wonderment of a child all over again, relearning ourselves and our reality.
Here’s where the real tricky part comes in to play. Remember that I said how it wasn’t okay to try and change someone’s association? For example, if you have moved on from the idea that politicians are supposed to be blindly trusted, but your neighbor hasn’t, do you now have the right to interject your opinion to him about it?
Well, these guys have implemented a system that has one man voting and affecting the rights of the man next to him. So, if we are to remain quiet, and let people believe in whatever reality they’d like to believe in, we are then opening the door for the possibility of more bad associations for our future generations.
I believe that we have entered a time in our history that calls for a responsibility to leave our children in better hands. If we allow the same things to happen, we’ll have another 3-4 generations angrily ripping away at the chains of their state. I’ve been through it. It’s not fun, and it’s not easy.
Therefore, I’ve been trying to change the association of my fellow Americans. And, the main thing we should call for, more than anything else, is transparency from our leaders.
We need to leave our children to form their own associations about reality, or we need to teach them from the start about the negative side of government and politics, and all of the bad things government’s have been able to do over the history of mankind.
If we can make reality be whatever we’d like it to be, well, why not shoot for the best? Be mindful. Watch your thoughts. When you hear or feel a thought you’d rather not, take note of what caused the thought as you stuff it away into the abyss.
Those thoughts you notice happening the most? Those will be your first few ‘enemies’ during the process of mindfulness. You’ll put yourself ‘on guard’ for these types of thoughts, especially if you are entering into a situation that’s been known to cause them in the past.
Best of Luck!
(Oh, and, please start ‘associating’ me, Craig Borzelleca, with ‘the greatest writer that’s ever made it from Conshohocken’. Anything else I’d like to earn from you over time.)
Also, I don’t really have a daughter.
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