Where
Freedom Truly LivesThe 4th of July annual celebration reminds us not to take our freedom for
granted. We're prompted to consciously acknowledge and appreciate the
independence won years ago and to support our government's continuing
efforts to maintain our citizen rights.
However, with many citizens at odds with our leaders, feeling
misrepresented, unheard and deceived, some feel anything but gratitude for
our unperceived freedoms. Frustration and disempowerment are sometimes more
typical feelings for those who oppose the leadership of our government.
But true freedom isn't dependent on outside conditions; it doesn't require
that particular circumstances be in place for us to feel peace. In fact, if
we require certain situations to exist before we acknowledge freedom, we are
anything but free.
True freedom lies within. Until we tap into that truth, we're at the mercy
of the world around us for our peace of mind, joy and any other emotions we
attach to liberty.
What is freedom?
The word "freedom" itself invites the idea of being able to do as we please.
The dictionary definition includes "being exempt from external control or
interference," "at liberty rather than in confinement or under physical
restraint," and "the state of political or national independence."
Many Americans - arguably the most privileged citizens to walk the planet -
don't feel strongly connected to independence and liberty in their daily
lives. We speak as if we're slaves to a job or life responsibilities or even
time. We believe that without an abundance of time, money or health, we
aren't free to live the lives we really want. And with those thoughts we
would be right; we are enslaved. Not by our job or position in life, but by
our thoughts of such.
True freedom lies in our ability to deliberately choose our thoughts and
feelings. When we exercise that ability, we no longer require things "out
there" to be a certain way to feel peace "in here." Our "feel good" comes
from within. And it's there waiting for us whenever we choose to entertain
it.
Developing the discipline to choose how we think and feel is where we meet
true freedom. When we realize we don't have to have a certain amount of
money in the bank, a particular brand of government in office, a certain
health status, or whatever else we might condition our "feel good" on, we
embrace authentic personal liberty.
Who knows it?
How many of us exercise this power of freedom? And how often? Do you
regularly experience liberation from thoughts that otherwise hold you
trapped, not just in painful feelings but in the reality created by those
thoughts?
Whereas many across the globe consider the U.S. to be the epitome of
independence and freedom, as long as we are stuck in fearful, angry thoughts
directed toward terrorists, Republicans, environmentalists, corporations,
Mormons, immigrants, employers, or whomever, we are anything but free.
Author Victor Frankl practiced his freedom of thought under the particularly
challenging conditions of a Nazi concentration camp. In his book, "Man's
Search For Meaning," Frankl shared his belief that we each have the freedom
to discover what has meaning for us.
His death camp experience offers an extreme example of how it is possible to
choose what we think and feel despite the conditions surrounding us. As we
break that chain of relying on external circumstances to be happy or at
peace, we are truly free.
Last week a friend spent a night in jail for destroying public property,
after swatting at a street sign in a late night, Cosmopolitan-induced
gleeful moment. Although he briefly argued the ridiculousness of not being
free to have a happy moment in public or even to question officers without
repercussion, he at least realized his ability to choose personal freedom
once he was behind bars.
He could either be in jail as an ornery, insulted miscreant, or he could be
in jail as a peaceful, go-with-the-flow cooperative citizen. He chose
peaceful. And each time he tells the story, he has another opportunity to
choose whether to be indignant and angry or to laugh at himself and consider
himself better educated about police protocol.
He is always free to choose his perspective and can exercise or abdicate
that power any time. As he does, he dramatically alters his experience and
satisfaction with life. The same is true for each of us.
How to be free
Since the foundation of freedom lies in our power to choose thoughts and
feelings, we can embrace that power by developing a discipline of conscious
choice - releasing knee-jerk reactive thoughts that don't feel good and
finding our way, one better-feeling thought after another, to more pleasant
feelings.
If Dr. Frankl can do it, so can we.
As we practice conscious choice of thought, we no longer need the boss to
acknowledge our contribution to feel good about our job. We don't have to
get an anniversary present from our spouse to appreciate the relationship.
We don't require six months of living expenses saved up in order to sleep
well at night.
The additional beauty of this practice is that once we regularly spend time
with more pleasant thoughts, we attract a more pleasant life. One where
bosses offer generous acknowledgements, spouses treat us like gold, and
money flows in abundance - which just turns out to be icing on the cake,
since we didn't need any of that to enjoy life beforehand.
So next time you find yourself in a stressful conversation about the
importance of patriotism, evils of terrorism, or whatever topic might
inspire your negative feelings, remember your true freedom lies in your
ability to choose your thoughts and how you feel. Instead of being stuck in
anger or resentment, exercise your liberty to find your way to a
better-feeling thought. Be picky about the thoughts you entertain.
Similarly, when you recognize you're resisting a situation or circumstance
in life, use it as an opportunity to come back to your personal freedom.
Remember you are free to choose how you perceive it and how you feel. As you
do so, you'll find your sense of freedom increasing dramatically without
anything else around you needing to change.
Our thoughts create our world. Until we consciously choose our thoughts, we
are slaves to our perceptions of reality and are abandoning the freedom that
is our human birthright. This holiday, celebrate your internal liberty to
find your way to thoughts that create the world you want. Namaste.
(This article was originally published in Catalyst Magazine)
If you're so inclined, please feel free to reproduce this article in full with proper author credit (that would be me, Jeannette Maw) and link back to Good Vibe Coaching. Thanks!
