Eyes are a beautiful gift; some would even say “a window to the soul.” Every day I am grateful for this treasure of eyesight which allows me to view the bright red cardinal singing outside my window, the colorful leaves and the ever changing hues in the sky. Without my eyes, these would only be pictures painted in my imagination. But it is my deeper eyes that need continuous attention.
While you and I may have perfect vision, we may be completely blind in certain areas of our lives, our beliefs, the way we view others and especially to ourselves.
Ironically, it is often in the notion that we see things perfectly that our true blindness is exposed.
It’s amazing to think how many things we can be blind to in ourselves. We can be completely blinded by our own hypocrisy unable to turn the tables or flip the scenario on any given topic, especially true in politics.
We can be blinded by false narratives which have dictated much of our adult behavior. If we were once let down by someone we truly trusted then we might approach every human interaction from a place of suspicion, paranoia and belief that others are always trying to rip us off or steal from us. We then become blinded by the idea that no one is trustworthy and proceed to destroy every good thing we encounter by our own mistrust.
Yesterday I met a grown adult man who is blinded by conspiratorial thinking. He truly believes the earth is flat and that NASA is one big governmental cover-up and of course we never landed on the moon nor do we have an International Space Station orbiting the earth. All lies . . . he believes.
We can be spiritually blind thinking that we alone are special and that our truth is the only truth and all others who follow a different version of God are forever lost. If you have been in a religious cult and left to see things completely different with an uncluttered mind and fresh eyes – you may wonder how you were ever so completely blind. This is the story of so many coming out of Scientology and other cults.
“Why was I so blind?” they ask. Neuroscientists have discovered it is because our beliefs reinforced and entrenched by emotions can become the thickest blindfold of all. Perhaps there is none so blind than those who have willingly given their spiritual eyes over to someone else, someone they believe is a direct conduit to the truth and therefore can enlighten all of us lesser vessels.
But the most perplexing of human dilemmas is we can be completely blind to ourselves.
What about me? What am I missing about myself that others easily observe? What are my filters? I don’t want to be blinded to myself. So, what do I do?
For me, this self-discovery process starts with a basic desire to change, to want to be authentic, real and genuine. I have to be willing to be vulnerable, to listen with ears that truly want to hear. My ego really despises this process and will fight the entire time to protect the deeper hidden parts of self. Is it worth the risk?
It’s a daunting journey to peel back the layers and layers of filters which blind us from our true selves. But for some reason this quest draws me daily.
I can easily see you. I desperately want to see me.
So daily I reflect with awareness. I sit in silence and listen to the thoughts swirling in my head. I question my beliefs and lay them on the altar of science, logic and reason to be refined by the fires of truth.
So many ashes are on that altar and on occasion I have chosen to scoop up a few and reexamine the remains of my once fully formed opinions.
My fresh eyes reveal they are gone, no longer a part of my psyche or my daily reality. Ashes sift through my fingers, being carried away by the winds of time. What is left? More awareness, more clarity, more desire to evolve.
Every day brings a fresh new opportunity to be less blind. I see the sunrise – will I allow the light to penetrate my deepest darkness and shine on my buried motivations, filters, regrets, disappointments, wrong thinking and false narratives?
This article was written by a guest blogger. The opinions expressed here are those of the writer and do not reflect the opinions of Bob Lacey, Sheri Lynch or the Bob & Sheri show.
The Zen Den
Hello and welcome to The Zen Den. My name is Alison and while I am passionate about many things, my most inspiring driving force is human connection. Blogger, content writer, orthopedic exercise specialist, motivational speaker, international yoga pro, published songwriter, avid poker player, mom and wife are just a few of my titles. But when I do my job at NASA, I am known simply as “The Fairy Zenmother” a role I deeply love because people invite me into their space to help them find their center, relax and stretch their muscles and destress their mind. Here in the blogosphere version of The Zen Den, I invite you into my world where I will explore ideas for creating a better tomorrow and a kinder today. And hopefully, with insight, authenticity and humor; my words, observations and experiences will help you feel calm, centered, intellectually challenged and spiritually enlightened. Alternatively, if you have something you would like to see covered in The Zen Den, just let me know. Your feedback is welcome and valuable to the success of this blog. Finally, my heart is filled with gratitude to have this opportunity to share with all of you.
