Mind Over Matter

The power of the will is mighty. I think a lot of people underestimate the gains that can be had by not merely wishing, but by willing them into existence. The difference is subtle, but I will try to explain. A wish is equivalent to a shallow 'want'. "I wish I had a new car," or "I wish I had a better job," are simply weak declarations of your current status of driving a P.O.S., and holding down a job that you hate. But when your desires are not shallow, and are truly heartfelt, that is when The Might of the Will comes into action.

I am as guilty as the next guy for wishing for shit that I don't deserve. Being human, I see something that I like, and I want it. It's instinctual. But if I can't have it, I am being counterproductive for even giving it a second thought. If, however, what I want is immaterial, a product of mind stuff(versus matter stuff), then it is easily obtainable. I learned this trick when I was a kid- If I say to myself "I want to know this stuff," and then completely focus my attention on something else, I could think back to the something else and recall the important facts from whatever. The subconscious is that freaking awesome. Here is a rather bizarre specific example- To this very day, when I play Duke Nukem(the first one!), I can distinctly recall an episode of a show whose name I can't even remember, but it was on FOX, and it had animatronic dinosaurs, it may have been called "Dinosaurs". I am straying from the point- I was playing Duke Nukem when the show came on, and I wanted to watch it, but I was having too much fun killing aliens, so I 'watched it in the background', knowing that the next time I played Duke Nukem I would be able to watch the fully realized copy in my minds eye. It is weird, but that is how my memory works.

Here is an example everyone can probably relate to- You are midsentence when you can't remember a word or a name, it just isn't coming to you. You can think of some words that are like the word you are thinking of, but not the right word. You think about it and think about it until eventually, your focus is shifted to something else, and for the time being, you forget about remembering the word. Then, like a bolt of lightning, it comes to you. Sometimes, it's hours later, sometimes it's days or minutes. But it seems like it always comes like a shot in the dark, like your brain saying "Hey! You know that word we were thinking about? Well, I ran my search program, and it finally found it. You wouldn't believe where I found it, either...," but you probably know the drill.

I learn just about everything 'passively', as I call it. It is handy. I am getting really good at it, too. Nowadays, instead of involving myself in a material task in order to passively pick up my facts, I meditate. None of that fancy humming with my legs crossed, sitting half-naked on a pillow. It's not that I don't meditate like that sometimes, but it doesn't always have to be like that. But I have found that by concentrating on my current state of mind, I can easily recall information, or even a state of mind, just by 'feeling' the way I did when I set the intention to absorb it. This probably all sounds crazy to you people, but you can do it too. Maybe I'll write a motivational book about it someday, and charge thousands of dollars to speak at self-help seminars. There I go, wishing.

Sometimes it's like planting a seed(the seed being will), giving it time to take root, then marvelling at the way it blossoms. I am currently going through one of these more profound experiences. I touched upon this in a previous post. It has been weeks in the making, but it has been worth it. I had this brilliant idea of connecting my will to have confidence with the feeling that I get from exercising. That way, I am combining two very positive(and much needed) forces together, which already go hand in hand to some extent, just reinforced by willpower. Last night was a telling result- I went to Have a Nice Day Cafe, where I proceeded to dance(and drink) heavily. And, for once, I didn't give a shit if people were watching me dance. Hell, I wanted them to watch me dance. The confidence was working it's way out through me getting my groove on, and it was an awesome feeling, which has been persistent throughout today. I'm going to the gym in the morning, to pump up my muscles and my sense of self-worth, and I already know I'll be ready to seize the day.

The moral to all this is that the mind is eager to pick up on new skills, attitudes, states of consciousness, and it doesn't have to be hard. Put aside your desire for wordly wealth, and aspire for intellectual wealth, and you will go much farther.

"Peace comes from within. Do not seek it without."

--Buddha

This coming from a professional waiter...