Imagine yourself born into an environment as a fully developed being capable of developed thought, honest to (at least) yourself and not accountable to any power other than yourself. As you were just born, you will need to make some choices. To make such choices, the first thing you need to think about is what is acceptable to you and what is not acceptable. As you are honest to yourself and have the freedom to do whatever you want to with your new life, how should you proceed?
Imagine yourself born into an environment as a fully developed being capable of developed thought, honest to (at least) yourself and not accountable to any power other than yourself. As you were just born, you will need to make some choices. To make such choices, the first thing you need to think about is what is acceptable to you and what is not acceptable. As you are honest to yourself and have the freedom to do whatever you want to with your new life, how should you proceed?
Remember all the time that you are reading this: Since there is nobody other than yourself who is responsible for your well-being no one can be blamed for whatever situation you are in. You will suffer or enjoy the consequences of your choices, so:
- choose wisely, and then
- act upon your choice, otherwise you are cheating yourself, which you cannot while being honest to yourself.
First look around, how are you doing?
- Is the situation you are in the best that you can realistically imagine,
- Are all your needs met, physical, intellectual, and emotional.
- As you are answering these questions to yourself do not get careless. I mean: If you put an animal in a cage and control all its circumstances, than you can make a statement like “this animal is doing well given its environmentâ€. However, it is important to think about whether or not this animal could be doing better if the circumstances were changed (perhaps an improved social or physical environment). If you think that an animal in a cage is not a good example of how your life works, then do this: Walk out onto the street, and look around. How much of what you see was designed by people according to laws for regulating peoples’ lives (traffic rules, the color & size of signs, the material of the streets, the shape of trees, the quality of the air you breathe, where you are allowed to walk, what time the lights go on, etc.). OK, so you do not live in a cage, it is more like a “zoo†where things look and feel a little more natural, but do not kid yourself everything is controlled!
- So don’t ask yourself how you are doing given your present circumstances (because these circumstances are not of your own making), but ask how you are doing compared to your ideal situation. Is there room for improvement if you change these circumstances to how you want them to be?
Do you expect to be able to live a healthier life (physiologically, and psychologically) if you changed your location and / or your lifestyle. Could choosing differently lead to time consumption patterns with reduced stress levels, while providing a more effortless platform for exercise and dietary improvements.
- Do you spend time on (or at) a job. If so would you rather be doing something else? Does work provide you with what you consider time well-spent towards developing various aspects of life that you consider important. Does work leave you with enough time and energy to develop or indulge the remaining facets which you find important in making your life interesting, fulfilling and pleasurable?
Do you work with colleagues, and if so do they conform to the standards that you maintain in your private life. Is it acceptable to you that you surround yourself with people for (assuming a 40-hour per week job and 8 hours sleep per night) one third of your time awake with people that you rather not be around.
- Towards the end of your life when you look back, what memories do you wish to have? Will your present environment lead to the physical, intellectual, and emotional development that you expect to want to remember most. Is there room for improvement? In other words, will your present situation lead to the kind of life that will allow you to die proud? If you can imagine any more fulfilling ways, the question becomes: can you honestly say to yourself: “It is not worth the effort to make that ideal life happen.â€
Well I guess there are two questions:
- So… how are you doing?
- Just now was the beginning of the first day of your life…What are you going to do?
-The Sweaty Smiley Collective
The Sweaty Smiley Collective is a group of people committed to the idea that fun & games and gratification through sex, drugs, music, aesthetics, and general hedonism are the real goal in life and that everything else including the global DNA preservation, consciousness, and love, and all the other biggy issues are all just the ONLY conscious, enlightened self-interested means to that end.
Yes! pleasure is good and best enjoyed intensly, such that our lifestyle leads to sweating and smiling a lot 🙂
The Sweaty Smiley Collective can be reached at sweaty_smileys@hotmail.com
Author: Justin Bryant
News Service: TheExperiment Network
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