Sure, I bet everyone will go, "No, I'm not asleep, but boy have you looked at everyone else?"
We would go on to say, "Have you seen what this person has done or that person. Have you seen what is going on?"
Yet, we would claim, "we are enlightened" and "intelligent" and "awake".
Unfortunately that is what our ego leads us to believe. It disguises what we think reality is while hiding the true view of what being awake really is. It gets us to believe that what we chase in a day is the best thing for us rather than what actually is.
Here Are Some Examples
Joe - Asleep Online
This is one of the big ones online. Joe goes browsing through his many social media accounts and only reads a few words. Rather than reading the whole thing or reading the link behind it, Joe furiously types on his keypad making his point known in response. Often, the point made has absolutely nothing to do with what the link is about, but "Hey Dude, you're asking a little too much out of me because I can't be bothered with seeing the whole picture. I'd rather stay asleep." (Read more: Are You Asleep Online) posts on 6/14/17
Louise - Latest News Of The Day
Louise spends her free time keeping up with the latest news story of the day. Louise tells herself that she has to keep up on all the latest news. If she doesn't, she might miss something important. Yet, she doesn't realize that the news is just sucking her into this dark hole of fear that takes the life from her, leaving her asleep. (Read more: Latest News Of The Day) - posts on 6/15/17.
Thomas - You're Wrong, I'm Right
Thomas thinks that he has to convince everyone just how wrong they are. It is his duty to show them the error of their ways and not stop until they realize that. For he knows that his world and everything else in the world depends upon his insight and knowledge. No one else sees things truly like he does and he believes that all are asleep. Thomas will not consider for a moment that he is asleep. (Read more: You're Wrong, I'm Right) - posts on 6/16/17
Josephine - Burning The Candle
Josephine thinks that she can burn the candle at both ends of the stick. She knows the boss needs something, and the kids have their activities and places to be. Of course, her husband has expectations for her as well. She can't let anyone down. She is the only one that can do the things she does and she often complains how she never has enough help and she's the only one doing everything. It doesn't dawn on her that she is asleep. (Read more: Burning The Candle) - posts 6/20/17
Mortimer - Pain And Difficulty
Mortimer thinks that life is just about pain and difficulty. He goes to his doctor appointments and takes the medications that his doctor prescribes. He knows that the doctor knows best and so he doesn't question if there is anything different he needs to do in his life. He just follows the advice without question. Mortimer thinks he has solved his health issues through medication but what he doesn't realize is he is asleep. (Read more: Pain And Difficulty) - posts 6/21/17
Amy Lou - What We Put In Our Body
Amy Lou thinks that eating healthy is just something those new age people do. After all, she knows that every now and then she eats a salad when she goes out to eat. Yes, she is health conscious because she drinks her diet sodas and consumes the low fat snacks and food as stated on the packaging of the food item. Water is something she gets when drinking her coffee, but not something that she drinks regularly. Her body reacts with headaches and fatigue, but she blames this on stress and age, not on being asleep. (Read more: What We Put In Our Body) - posts 6/22/17
Frank - Connected To The Job
Frank thinks that taking time off is a good thing, but he is always too busy for that. He knows even if he tries to take time off, his email and phone will be buzzing day and night. Plus when he gets back to the office, he will have twice the work to catch up on, so time off becomes a dream. Yes, his employer forces him to take at least one week a year away from the office, but he's constantly checking email and working on projects. He doesn't realize he is asleep. (Read more: Constantly Connected To The Job) - posts on 6/23/17
Sally - Asleep By Smart Phone
Sally loves her brand new smart phone that she got for Christmas. It makes it so easy to keep up with her friends and follow along on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. Every free moment she gets, Sally is on the phone. She feels so good. It keeps her company. When she is bored or just needs an escape, out comes the phone. It helps her while sitting there waiting in a restaurant or when friends are chatting. She can just go to her happy and safe place with her phone. Yes, it is disconnecting from everyone, but hey she is still there present with them, although asleep. (Read more: Asleep By Smartphone) - posts on 6/27/17
Donnie - Feeling Pain In The Body
Donnie thinks everything is going fine. He goes to the gym, works hard around the yard at home, and pretty much thinks everything is okay. He sees others struggling with body aches and pains and thinks, "I'm glad I'm not like them." After all, he doesn't have time to deal with pains in his body. There is just too much too accomplish. Yeah, he gets an occasional headache maybe, but for the most part he has absolutely no pain in his body. His body is 100% pain free. Unfortunately, that's a good sign of how asleep Donnie is. (Read more: Feeling Pain In The Body) - posts on 6/28/17
Mirabel - Asleep By Happy Thoughts
Mirabel knows that life can be very difficult, but she will not let that ruin her life. She shows positivity to everyone around her. Even if she is so sick she can barely stand up, she puts the smile on for everyone she meets. After all, it is up to her to set a positive example of what being happy is all about and she sure can't let anyone down. She can't show anyone that her life is anything but happiness. So she only shows the happy smile and shares happy thoughts online, avoiding anything and everything that is hard for her to deal with in her life. Unfortunately Mirabel doesn't realize just how asleep she is. (Read more: Asleep By Happy Thoughts) - posts on 6/29/17
These are all examples of being asleep in life, rather than being fully aware and conscious. We all have our moments where we are asleep, but it should be our endeavor each day to awaken more and more.
Being fully aware and conscious is not just an exercise for the mind. We may focus on that and we may only know that route, but this requires a connection between the mind and body. It is where we discover more of who we are, as we let go of the ego. It is where we become grounded so that we can soar.
Many of the things that concern us in a day really don't matter in the grand scheme of our life as much as we think they do. We have allowed our ego to tell us that all of this matters, but the ego is feeding us an illusion as if it were reality.
We often tell ourselves that what we believe is true, yet we fail to stop and see that our own paradigms and beliefs are holding us back. They are locking us into a box, rather than helping us grow and discover how awake we could be.
I'll try to take each one of these examples and expand more upon it them the coming days. If one of them resonates with you, there's a good chance that there is a reason it does. Some of these are firsthand examples from my own life that I have had to deal with, so don't feel like you're alone.
Being human is not about being asleep. Instead it is a continual journey of discovering more of who we are and what makes us human. The more we open our eyes from our sleep, the more the world looks differently.
Make sure you check out the next part in this 11 part series
Part 2 is "Are You Asleep Online"
Blog Post And Images (c) 2017 by Don Shetterly
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