Saturday, September 15, 2018

Hopeful Thinking - Saturday, September 15, 2018 - Pick Your Worldview

Go ahead. Call me Pollyanna. Accuse me of seeing the world entirely through rose-colored glasses. I’m fine with that. More than fine, actually. I’m proud of it. I wear my optimism like a badge of honor.
But that’s just my own worldview. You are free to choose your own. Which one will you pick? When I see talking heads on the news or look at social media discussions about the state of our world it’s easy to see the color of their glasses. There’s enough evidence, imaginary or legitimate, to support nearly any idea. Good or bad. Tragic or joyous. Everything from conspiracy theories, to aliens, to pending global annihilation has a tangible basis for debate. There’s plenty of so-called evidence out there to back up virtually any claim imaginable. We are free to believe anything we wish.
So what do you choose?
Because we actually do have to make a choice. How we choose determines a lot about how we conduct our lives. Everything from our emotional and physical health to our day-to-day choices are a direct result of our own personal worldview.
Of course there’s darkness in the world. But do you believe that the darkness has a power of its own, or is merely allowed to exist at the behest of our own fears and lack of action? In looking at your own hometown, what do you see? Do you see trees and flowers, or trash and abandonment? Do you see people caring or do you see only apathy? Needles lying the the street or social workers trying to save people from themselves? Because both exist. But which one do you support with your thinking?
In my own hometown I see much of both. We all live in the same little city, but each has their own experience of it entirely. For instance, I love my city deeply. My sister, on the other hand, couldn’t move away fast enough. What is it that makes us feel so differently about the exact same place? All the facts are the same, the people are the same, the buildings, river, trees, all the same. Yet we couldn’t be more opposite about how we view them and how they make us feel.
The same can be said for the state of the world.
How do you feel about the world? Do you think it is in the process of slowly raising its vibration and the drama we are seeing is the symptom of growth pains, or are we witnessing its demise? In other words, toward which reality are you contributing your energy?
Do you have inner peace? Perhaps not to the ideal degree, but are you at least facing in that direction? Does it give you ease to delve into the seemingly ceaseless tragedy of the world or to find ways of improving it?
Complaining is a fascinating exercise. It is practically a religion of its own. Many of us are literally addicted to the act of stressfully ruminating over all that the world has taken from us without ever feeling the need to count our blessings. How does this affect our bodies? Stress releases harmful chemicals like adrenaline and cortisol. These hormones do have a use in the biological function of fight or flight, but how good is a steady, continuous drip of them? And when you engage in constant worry over all things, that’s exactly what you’re doing. One may as well put an IV of poison straight into a main artery. Our bodies literally calcify from the abundance of negativity with which we choose to surround ourselves.
Choose something better for yourself. Reach for a higher thought. It won’t change the reality of the world. Or will it?
What would happen if everyone started to see a slightly brighter picture of things? Would that change the darkness? I believe incrementally yes. Because when we are in a more relaxed state we make better decisions. We relate to people differently. We see them as less of a threat to our well-being and find friends in those we previously distrusted. The loving network of the world is enhanced.
Complaining about the state of our planet without taking any action to improve it is the same as complaining about politics without voting. In my book, we have no right to either.
That’s not to say we should be blind to hardship nor give a pass to things which damage us. Quite the opposite. But if we take a more loving stance in our worldview, the things we fear have a stronger likelihood of transforming into the best possible version of themselves. Don’t forget that. It is a peace which has the capacity to save us all.

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