Saturday, September 14, 2013

Transient Emotions

Human beings are such fickle creatures. We experience transient emotions that fluctuate and morph into different forms, based on a multitude of events in our lives. Sometimes these emotions are fleeting and other times they last moments longer than we expect. Other times we just sail through life unaware. Many people use this as an escape route to a parallel world where they only exist in the here and now. At times I wonder if this is the best way to go...

photo credit - forbes.com
Many of us would rather programme our bodies to react only when necessary, in an attempt to shield ourselves from any intense feeling or worse yet pain. Others love to indulge in the intensity and 'rush' it appears to bring, seldom coming down from this high. Yet some of us rather stay on middle ground where it is safe and normal.

What we sometimes don't realize is that life is unpredictable. You never know when it's going to sneak up on you and surprise you. When it will throw you for a loop and cause you to change your modus operandi. We can choose to ignore and just go through the motions or we can come up for air, proceed with caution and swim with the tide.

It's easy for us to have the last say, but sometimes there's someone a little quicker than us, who can beat us at our own game. Then we have no choice to follow the path that has been laid out for us. When this happens we are caught unaware and forced to re-examine our existence and relations to others.

For the first time, we see life for what it is: a production to behold. The question is: do we just look on and let it play out in front of our eyes? Or do we actively have a role to play?

Indeed the role we play depends on how we see ourselves in the whole scheme of things...where we end up further afield depends on our convictions, beliefs, willpower and gumption to face our fears and follow through till the end to enjoy the desired result we secretly crave.