Having made poor attempts to release a new blog post here on Mindfulness & each week, I am going to simply do my best in writing each week and therefore release some of that writing here.
This is an excerpt from The Story of Cogia (Sandman) by Hassan Alhabba (I believe I read it in the book Arabian Nights):
“My wife was like one distracted when she knew what she had done. She cried, beat her breast, and tore her hair and clothes. Unhappy women that I am, cried she, where shall I find this sandman? I never saw him before. O husband, added she, you were much to blame in not telling the secret to me.
Wife, said I, moderate your grief; by your cries you will alarm the neighbors, and they will only laugh at, instead of putting us. We had best bear our loss patiently, and submit ourselves to the will of God.
It is true we live poorly; but what have the rich which we have not? Do not we breathe the same air, enjoy the same light, and the same warmth of the sun? Why should we envy their happiness? They die as well as we. In short, while we live in the fear of God, their advantage over us is so inconsiderable that we ought not to covet it.”
—
This passage seems to begin with a lesson to women to be submissive to their husbands. This story was written long ago in an age when this was the norm. I do not agree with this position, where the wife makes the mistake of losing the sandman (the god of dreams). But given the time, the writer had little respect or concern for women’s independent feelings.
Besides that internal note, what I gleaned from this passage was to live not to accumulate wealth or status (which is so hard not to follow), but to experience all that is possible.
We live in such an overstimulated world today, where it takes much discipline to put the screens down and spend time with others or in nature. Our desire for more is not new, it is embedded in human nature, and it shows even in this passage written 600-900 BC.
Every single person on this beautiful blue marble is connected by a shared human experience; love, loss, frustration, sadness, boredom, and even anxiety over finances are what connect us.
Let go of the worries that beset you, no matter their root. As they arise, ask yourself, “Is this the place I belong right now?” And even if you answer like I do, “Well maybe, but not completely”, then devise a plan to find out where you belong, and then see that plan through.
This is a plan that will change with the seasons, but one that you will know is right at your core. I know one of my paths in life is to write, to express myself through the medium of words. And I know this for two reasons.
One is because I have been writing in a journal since I could remember. I have journals that date back to ten years old. Much similar to a pianist or guitarist that starts playing as a child.
But the other reason was that when I stopped writing or got too busy in life, it felt like I was missing a piece of me, something I wasn’t doing causing this mystery emptiness. I wasn’t living a fulfilling life. I know that sounds crazy but it’s true. I believe every one of us has that something that we must do to fulfill us. It’s possible it can be more than one thing but no more than three.
For instance, Robert Downey Jr, one of my favorite people I’ve yet to meet, is an actor, musician, and writer; it’s safe to say that all three fulfill him, but acting is that one thing he probably can’t do.
Two other paths are to explore and to photograph (although photography is just attention to detail mixed with a creative mind). There is nothing spectacular about taking a photo, especially today, but there is something beautiful about telling a story from a photo.
If done right, a collection of photos becomes a snapshot of the past to teach a powerful lesson about the future, which of course is the preset. I have created a website in an attempt to do just this: joshaveryphoto.com
The other path was to explore, and boy does that fulfill me, the release of dopamine mixed with the craving of novelty is one reason why I love to travel so much. The other reason is that I cannot, physically, sit around too long without knowing what else is out there. I’d call this unfulfilling.
Now, when I combine the three: writing, photography, and travel, I reach a place of completion, where I couldn’t be happier doing anything else (and I’ve attempted doing a lot of other things).
The other much more important reason to travel, take photos, and write is to make a positive difference, even if it’s just to one other person.
Now, what does all this have to do with letting go of that human desire to accumulate wealth or status? It is the reframing of that difficult endeavor to one of a question, “How can I pursue that which accumulates fulfillment and makes a difference to someone”.
In both letting go of one thing and pursuing another, we move the needle closer to a place of true contentment. Wealth and status lose their attraction and fulfillment and difference takes their place.
