A.N.Y. Questions... Breaking the Ties that Bind (Question #31)
What habits in others annoy you the most?
Misophonia
Misophonia is the disorder of being bothered by the sounds of people eating. My hubby suffers from this; just ask him how much he enjoys my eating potato chips in his presence. I may not suffer from this to the extent that he does but today I realized I do too. When I was on the phone at work today, one of the calls I had was eating in my ear. All I could hear was her breathing and chewing in the phone and it really bothered me. This wasn't the first time that people have eaten when I am on the phone but today it became an annoyance. The sounds just grossed me out and it took quite the restraint to not say something. Well, was it worth losing my job? No, so Jax remained silent and made a mental note to eat my chips with less gusto. Despite how much this idiosyncrasy annoys me it isn't what annoys me the most, so let's get to that.
Elephants
No, elephants don't annoy me. They are majestic beasts that symbolize wisdom, good luck. happiness, longevity, extensive memory and high intelligence. Below I have quoted a story about an elephant and a rope to illustrate my point.
The verb annoy is defined as making someone a little angry. Am I angry at the people who tied the elephant up in the first place? No, we all have strings placed on us that hold us hostage. Am I angry at the elephant for remaining tied to the stake? No, for we all have limiting beliefs that at one time were big enough to keep us captive. Remember in the story that the string attached in childhood was capable to keep the elephant tied to the stake. It's the perception that's the problem. People lose sight that they actually have outgrown the string that keeps them trapped. One simple tug of self-confidence and they are free. It's about the decision to challenge what binds them and their perception of it. That doesn't mean that the elephant will know what to do with that freedom but that's not necessary at this point; all it needs is a decision.
So what is the decision? It's simple really but like most simple things it's made much more complicated. It's the decision to see your perspective differently. Many people want to stay a victim or tied to their past. They want to learn ways to live within the confines of the string instead of challenge the string all together. The biggest stumbling block? It's being afraid of what life would be like without the string. That brings up a whole bunch of questions that can't be answered with your current thinking. What annoys me is that people refuse to see that and talk themselves out of freedom. As Einstein said, "You cannot change the problems with the same thinking that created them". Once the decision is made to change your thinking the string will break. Then and only then can you be free.
Did this response resonate with you? I would love to hear your take on the question and how it impacted you. Please post your thoughts below.
On January first, I posted our first article in this series explaining a new way to approach New Year's resolutions. Each day we will explore a different question that challenges us to understand ourselves better. The format will be as follows: I will post the previous day's question with my answer followed by the next day's question for contemplation.
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First, is there a string that binds us?
It is so commonly ordinary and integrated that we are already blinded of its' presence. Only when it's acknowledge that we can do something about it. Most times, this is the hard part.
That is an excellent question and the answer is yes and no.
For the argument that there is a string, it is a result of an event, the spike, that entered our life. Due to a combination of social and hereditary conditioning we draw conclusions surrounding the event. We justify the behavior of others by adopting lies about ourselves. It's much like taking poison and expecting others to die. These lies are the strings that tie us to the stake. You are correct that over time they can appear ordinary and integrated but we are never blinded by their presence. Say for instance you believe the lie that you are unloved and that ties you to the stake. When you come in contact with any other being where the emotion of love presents itself, the lie will scream out in the feelings of our insecurities. This string becomes a constant companion and reminder until, like the elephant, you may completely give up. The true blindness comes in our ability to break the string. Now in our current thought paradigm we perceive the string to be just as insurmountable as the initial confinement. That is the error and the source of blindness. We are different people than the initial event for we are ever evolving individuals. Daily we are introduced to new experiences that give us tools that we didn't have present during the original event. The question is what are you using the tools for? Are you focusing on how the insurmountable the string is or the fact that you have the strength to break it?
The string represents the thought pattern or belief that ties us to the event and it's purpose is to cripple us and keep us small. What makes a belief have power is the huge amounts of energy we invest in convincing ourselves of its existence. Once new thought patterns arise that counter the belief and alter it the original state is gone. So is it really there if it can disappear with one single thought? I have had a firm stand on a philosophy and one single thought brought it down like a house of cards. It obliterated my belief system in such a way that my original belief was nowhere to be found. With the science of thought mastery and creating your own reality, the string is just a manifestation of the belief not a confirmation. You are trapped for you first believed you were. Change the thought and the shackles are dropped.
Thank you for your awesome comment :)
You're welcome. please keep on with your posts :)
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