PAIN

Ah pain, the experience we all instinctively do our best to avoid. It’s what gives us the most fear in this lifetime. Not to start off this post with a grim observation but when most people say they fear death the most, it’s really how you're going to die, it’s that anticipation of pain that gives you the anxiety. And it’s for this reason that most of us assign a negative connotation with pain, we like to think that a painless life is a good life. But the more you avoid pain, the smaller your life becomes because in the famous words of the Buddha “Life is Suffering” So why would arguably the wisest man in human history take the time to instill that mantra into his teachings? I’d like to think it’s because he understood how pain or suffering can be our greatest teacher, since it is unavoidable, learning how to sit in it and decipher its language would be the only way we could evolve as conscious beings. I’m a hyper cerebral person by nature so much so that sometimes I completely forget that I have a body lol I’ll bump into easily avoidable objects on the street, trip up the stairs, miss interpret or lose sight of simple yet important details others attempt to rely to me, etc… And that’s all cute when your 14 but when you start adulting that can become a serious problem, I am now getting to the point where I want to get back into my body and be present for life…but that would also means stepping into all of these annoying pain points. It can be extremmmmmely frustrating and overwhelming trying to iron out the kinks of this dissociative behavior, but after sometime of trudging through the mud I start to feel a little bit more relief than I did yesterday. I start to understand that my pain points are actually opportunities for me to clean up my act. That stomach ache I use to ignore after eating a bunch of candy which poked me in the side like a tiny imp all day all of sudden doesn’t show up! Because I allowed myself to sit in that pain, understand what is was telling me “you just ate a bunch of shit how could you do this me” find actionable steps, and trudge through the mud. I think most of us understand what needs to be done when pain arises, but we also understand the healing process can possibly be even more painful so we sit in our suffering. I encourage you to focus on how you’re going to feel after the process is complete, and focus on the tiny incremental tastes of relief you get as you go trudge through the mud and before you know it you’ll be a little bit more free than you once were, you’ll be a little bit more intelligent after understand how Squarespace works (as infuriating as it can be at times), a little bit stronger after finally deciding to go the gym, a little bit healthier after choosing dried mango strips instead of peach rings idk lol you get the point. Pain isn’t an obstacle, it’s a stepping stone. Have a beautiful Wednesday everyone stay blessed and Keep your I open.