I recently went on a trip to Egypt. I was astounded by the sense of spirituality and calm that I found as I cruised down the Nile River. While I have seen areas of great poverty in our country and in other parts of the world, on this cruise I was struck by the simplicity of life that seemed directly opposed to the great materialism of the United States. People along the shores lived in very small, mud brick homes, with no electricity, plumbing or phones. The people did not look impoverished, and they actually looked happy. Children played, women were together doing chores and men bonded in the center of these small villages. There is so much history and beauty on these shores. The depth of it all was overwhelming. It was at this time that I realized how sad it is that in the United States we equate happiness with materialism. In our culture, we tend to look outside of ourselves rather than within. We are unconscious of our socialization into a superficial view of life. I began to think of principles that I wanted to use more consciously in my life upon my return. These are some thoughts I share with you.
Resist the cultural trend of fear. I see so many people fearful of the future. It is easy to understand why we think this way just by consciously looking/listening to the news headlines. With multiple 24 hour news channels and increasing competition of the internet, news corporations have to do more to get our attention. Fear is their lure of choice. We are told to be scared of a terrorist attack, hurricanes, avian bird flu pandemic, drought, calories in restaurant food, pedophiles on every street corner, and melting ice caps. It feels as if we are told that we are living on the brink of destruction. I truly believe that media brain washing has an impact on all these anxieties. Life will continue to challenge us in all the ways that we are meant to be challenged, no more or less than any generation. As Franklin D Roosevelt once said, “There is nothing to fear but fear itself.”
There is a broader purpose in life than achievements. If national study numbers are indicative of beliefs, a majority of us believe in a higher power. As we get caught up in all of our daily tasks, we forget to remember that we are on this earth for purposes other than to earn a certain amount of money, or winning recognition. I have not heard of any world religion that would support that these milestones are important on a bigger scale. We are all here on earth for a larger purpose. Our purposes lie in how we accomplish what we do, finding lessons from adversity and how we interact in our world as people. It’s important that we lift our heads from watching every step we take and look at bigger meaning that surrounds us.
Slow down and take care of yourself. We can never connect with our purpose or figure out the bigger lessons to learn in life if we don’t slow down. We work more hours than any other country in the world. Getting lost in tasks, errands and media distractions is an easy way to lose ourselves. We all need to find time every day to just be. Make it a priority each day to have that half hour to turn away from distractions and sit with a cup of coffee, take a quiet walk or sit in the bathtub. To hear the important things in life, we must find silence.
Life is elastic and forgivable. Most times when I speak with someone facing adversity, I hear a fear that life will be catastrophically impacted. We know people who have suffered through adversity and illness. These are the moments that are defining. If we face these times with courage then we grow stronger and go farther/deeper/higher in our lives afterwards. Life is not a china plate, but rather a piece of silly puddy. We can’t break life and it can only break us if we allow it. Even if we feel broken, we can be put ourselves back together more strongly whenever we are ready.
We only grow through adversity and failure. We must learn to forgive ourselves in times of failure. It is only through difficult times that we will truly find and develop an inner strength. Successes are nice and make us feel good, however, they do not build us the way adversity does.
There is a lesson in everything that happens to us. If we are to connect with a deeper purpose to life, then we also need to look for deeper lessons in all that happens to us. Even that nasty person at work who gets on our very last nerve has something to show us about ourselves. The only failure in life is passing by an opportunity to grow from a challenging situation. While it can sometimes take years to figure out why something took place in our life, the journey is to begin to make these discoveries more instantaneously.
The only person in this world who can truly validate you, is you. In the US we are socialized to find our value in comparing ourselves to others. We are influenced by media to believe we can define ourselves through the clothes we wear, the car we drive or the neighborhood we live in. We are pressured to believe that pretty, thin and fit people are somehow happier. I know people who have achieved remarkable things in their lives, but still have inferiority complexes because validation by others is fleeting. Instead of spending so much time looking outside of ourselves, we must take more time to look within.
I am always grateful for the experience I had on the Nile. I’m sure there are many places in the world where people experience this same contemplation. May we all have our moment to awaken and more consciously see what societal influences shape our daily lives. Once we become aware, we can then figure out what principles can guide us to a more enriched way to live.