I Choose To Ignore

There is far too much going on in this world to worry about it all.  If you're not careful, you become wrapped up in other people's negativity and toxicity.  It will render you into a crying mess of an existence.

I choose to ignore it.  It is the best thing I can do for my own sanity.  Engaging with people that have no desire but to destroy themselves and others does absolutely no good for me.  It is unhealthy and if I'm not careful, it attempts to suck me down into the mud pit they are in.

I choose to ignore some of the most hateful comments and tweets and shares that I see.  For some are not up to the goal of being human.

I choose to ignore the ones that just try to bait you to get a rise out of you with their hurtful statements, thoughts, and language.

I choose to ignore the memes that provoke your compassionate side because someone needs attention and they get it by playing on your sensitivities.

I choose to ignore the people who think they are the experts and instead of being authentic, they show their own ignorance with a half-baked idea and plan.

I choose to ignore those that only see one side of an issue, not because they haven't seen more, but they choose to not see more.  Only one side is all they wish to see.

I choose to ignore those that seem to want to hurt others and that it is okay with them in how they do this.  They may think it is okay, but it does nothing to help a fellow traveler along in this world.

I choose to ignore being ignored by others because their life is too busy or they don't care or they just don't value my time as an individual.

I choose to ignore the hatred, the mean-spirited and the grandstanding in this world because it serves no purpose and the more I give it a container to grow in, the more I'm a part of its growth.

I choose to ignore the single focused obsession with only one view in life.  I know there is so much more and so it serves no benefit to me.

I choose to ignore the one side pitted against the other because instead of helping one another, we stand opposed which ultimately weakens all of us.

I choose to ignore those that preach love and acceptance and respect, but then go out and do just the opposite through their own words, actions, and thoughts.

I choose to ignore those that just try to get attention in any way possible and by doing so, they disrespect all those that need a little extra in a day.

At this moment, I'm not willing to engage with people in many of these things.  If someone is truly wanting to engage and try to understand, then I will be there with bells on.  However, I see far too much disrespect and hatred these days that I have no desire to be a part of in my life.

I see far too much fear and if fear is not harnessed and learned from, it becomes a poison that spreads to every member of society and every cell of the body.  When fear rules, we lessen the overall human experience and we degrade awareness and consciousness down into a nutrient-less bubble.

May we rise above and may we see more than the world we currently see.  We've got to be better than this as humans.  We've got to be better than this as a world.  For if we continue to stand opposed, we will never be able to stand up against the things that life brings into our view.

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Blog Post And Images (c) 2017 by Don Shetterly

• Permission required before any part of this blog post is reprinted, reworded or used in any form. 
• You are welcomed to share the LINK to this blog post.  

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It's Easy To Point Your Finger

We all do it.  Yes, we do.  We all do it.  No matter how much you don't think you do, there's that one ounce of a probability that you do.  It's easy to point your finger at others.

Whether it is politics and how we respond or how someone looks or acts or behaves.  Whether it is those that don't measure up to our standards or irritate the daylights out of us at every turn, we point our fingers at them.  Whether it is those that don't believe like we do and we feel are lost or those that share differing opinions, we point our fingers at them.

Sharing things online...

It is easy to point your finger at others while declaring you know all and have all the answers.  It may be labels that you use towards one another, or how you think they are so lost and will never see the light of day.  It may be the way you share things online that become nothing more than pointing your finger at another person.

While skepticism and disagreement can be healthy, we have gotten to the point these days that we hold on to a mentality of "you are either with us or against us".  There is no happy medium.  There is no middle ground.  It is either one way or no way.   If you need evidence of that, just spend 5 minutes on Facebook or Twitter and it should become quite clear.

We don't listen to others...

We don't welcome the opinions of others although we often claim we do.  We don't listen to others like we think we actually do.  We are too busy telling others how to think, what to do, how to believe, and which thing they should follow.  We are too busy telling people the solution to their problem that we don't even bother to listen to their problem first and understand it.

I grew up in a church and a home where we criticized everyone that didn't think the way we thought.  If they believed differently in our church, they were going to hell.  If they didn't do things and act the way we thought, they were just wrong.  There was no adherence to understanding or tolerance.  We sought out people and churches and organizations that made it okay to point the fingers at others. That was how our family operated.

Disgust, rather than listening...

Our society is the same way.  Every day, too many look at others with disgust, rather than sitting down and listening.  We rant and rave and scream how stupid or idiotic others are.  If we don't do it online by our shares and likes, it is often in our private thoughts.

How strong will our civilization and world be if we continue down this path?  How much do we really care for others, if all we can do it focus on the things that we cannot stand about each other?  What does it truly say about how we see ourselves, if all we can see are the perceived faults and deficiencies in one another?

(click image to read)

The government cannot change it.  Our leaders and ministers can't change this.  This is something that each one of us needs to search our hearts and really open our eyes to what we do.  It is something that not everyone else needs to change, but each one of us individually.  If you think it is everyone else that has the problem, it is within your own heart that you need to change first.

I'm no different.  I try to accept everyone, but there are those that are screaming at the top of their lungs that can make me cringe.  I want to point my finger at them and say, "how dare you?"  How can you say these things.  Yet, if I expect them to listen to me, then I need to be able to listen to them without judgment and condemnation.

It isn't easy.  If you think it is, find the person that irritates you the most and see if you can sit with them for a day and not condemn or judge them.  I don't mean, play like you can, but really go deep within your own soul and don't point your finger at them.

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Blog Post And Images (c) 2016 by Don Shetterly

• Permission required before any part of this blog post is reprinted, reworded or used in any form. 
• You are welcomed to share the LINK to this blog post.  

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I Thought I Knew It All

At one time, I thought I had it all together.  I thought I knew it all.  When it came to taking care of myself, of course I did that.  When it came to eating right, of course I did that.  When it came to understanding all things about the universe and being spiritual, of course I did that.

The thing is, I didn't know as much as I thought I knew.  I had swallowed up all that had been shoveled down my throat by my family, society and the church.  I was gulping it as if it was my last meal.  Unfortunately, it didn't get me too far in the direction I needed to go.  Sorry, if this doesn't sound like something you want to read, but it is the truth.

We can convince ourselves...

We can convince ourselves that we know all, but when our actions don't align with what we think and say, then who are we fooling the most?  We all do it, whether we want to admit it or not.  Its part of being in a human body that is functioning every day.

I am not saying this because it is a pie-in-the-sky concept.  I've seen it first hand in my own body and I've seen it in a lot of other bodies.  We often don't know as much as we think we know or see or understand or believe or I could go on and on.  I know that steps on toes.  It stepped on mine many years ago.

Back in 1991 when my life came crashing down and I took my last breaths of air, I realized one thing.  What I thought I knew was not what was true.  In fact, in order for me to heal and come back from the brink of death, I had to discard most of what I had been taught.  I had to discard most of what I thought I had learned.  It was the only way to move forward and to walk again and to function normally in life.

Yes, I tried to convince myself and others that I knew a lot, but when life knocks you flat on your butt and you are gasping for your last breaths, you realize just how much you don't know!  You begin to see what you have not seen up until this point.

Yes, I fought it.  I didn't want to change and let go of all that I depended upon in life.  I didn't want to let go of the foundation of what I thought I knew.  Yet, the more I was clinging to it, the more my life was drifting out of my reach.

Afraid to let go...

I see many that have done the same thing I did.  I see many that cling on to that which does not work, but they are too afraid to let go.  I was too afraid as well to let go.

I'm not going to sit here today and tell you what you have to do or how you need to get to your next point on the journey of your life.  This is for you to figure out and understand as you take steps.  How would I know the truth of what lies ahead for you anyway and if you listened to me on that, you'd be missing the best part of discovering that truth for yourself.

If we are talking about truth and fact and fiction, the following blog post addresses this in more detail.

 

(click here to read)

We, as humans, are super pros at convincing ourselves that we know more than we do and we have life figured out more than we do.  Its called being human.  However, the evolution of our consciousness and awareness is what leads us to discovery.  Its the moments where we let go of all that we know and venture into the unknown that we truly discover more about ourselves and who we are as humans.

Question Of The Day - Have you ever had a moment where you thought you knew it all?  Leave a comment below and let me know if you or have not.

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Blog Post And Images (c) 2016 by Don Shetterly

• Permission required before any part of this blog post is reprinted, reworded or used in any form. 
• You are welcomed to share the LINK to this blog post.  

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