Sunday, March 6, 2011

The Art of Life - Tiny Stories

By Chris Emmanuel

“Words only have the power we choose to give them”

I am having a bad day.
He did it on purpose.
She let me down.
They are wrong.

These are the tiny stories we tell ourselves to justify our actions. When life doesn’t go the way we expect, we need to find a way to satisfy the small self. They are mostly a complaint to assert our behavior to others-designed to render judgment making rights and wrongs. We create unreal boundaries to push others down and build ourselves up. Through these boundaries we create enemies, most often never understanding the truth of a situation.

This is how we create suffering. Through time we block ourselves in, only gathering around us those who fit within the wall of our ego. And if that’s not enough, we tell others these tiny stories and spread poison on each other gathering disciples to justify our position. So many people today have lost the ability to think and not knowingly given their minds over to gossip, media, society and their peers. Brainwashing is always going on.

How nice life would be without these tiny stories that create divisions between people. How nice it would be to get the truth about what really happened. The great thing about a small island is you know everyone. The bad thing is that you know everyone. Suffering starts when we start naming or labeling our situation. Next time you find yourself suffering because of a tiny story, ask yourself: why do I let other people’s words and ideas become so important to me? Then spend your time focusing on what you want to get out of life.

Books by Christopher Emmanuel can be purchased at his Art Gallery in the Sun breeze Hotel, Art of Touch, Pages Book Store, Black orchid Spa and Sol Spa.