What Are the Voices That Call to You? Are You Listening?

We all find our reasons for following the paths we follow.

Usually, there is some kind of "voice" that prompts us, whether it's that of a family member or another loved one, or our inner wisdom, or even the voice of what we might call "Spirit."

Of course, in our world of eternal hustle and bustle, much of the time we're not really listening to those voices.

Why should we?

My experience has been that we tend to get stuck down inside ruts and routines, and we get so busy just going through the motions we need to in order to merely survive our days that we become deaf to those other voices reminding us that there might be something different; something better out there... if we only take the time to stop and listen.

Don't get me wrong here, I have been as guilty as the next person of not listening to what... what shall we call it... my higher self was whispering to me.

Of course, listening and actually heeding what is being said often entails risk. So we ignore the voices, because we don't feel willing to accept the possible risks.

A long time ago, I was sitting in a doctor's office, leafing through a psychology magazine, and I remember reading an article that mentioned something called "the falsification of self."

No, it's not weird, nor woo-woo.

But it's something many of us do do... for example, when we cling to a job that's well paying even though we are regularly being required to take actions that contradicts our own core values.

"Yeah, but I can't AFFORD to quit!" we tell ourselves as the rationalization for staying on, even though it makes us feel miserable.

What I remember about the article was the conclusion that not being true to ourselves — especially in the long run — carried both mental and physical health risks... stress, anxiety, depression, high blood pressure, increased risk of strokes and more.

Our minds and bodies know when we're telling ourselves lies, in service of maintaining a status quo that may be safe but doesn't serve our deeper and authentic needs.

Sometimes people throw away these ideas with a dismissive statement like "Happiness is overrated in the REAL world!"

Which is just a way of saying "I don't want to be accountable for the consequences of rocking the ship!"

Again, I know what that feels like. I was never much of a risk-taker, by nature.

"Listening" matters, though. It's a bit like our built-in early warning system telling us that something is not as it should be. But listening isn't scary once you understand that simply hearing what is said doesn't obligate us to act. It's just a warning.

Of course, most of the time we'll want to take action...

Thanks for stopping by and have a great remainder of your weekend!

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Created at 2023-12-17 00:36PST
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