Restless. Less Rest.

Relaxing is not my forte. I realize my interpretation of relaxation is really more about doing nothing than it is about rejuvenation through some form of stillness. When I try to “rest”, I just end up feeling restless and it prevents me from falling asleep. My mind is presently ill-equipped to turn off, and the days have become a blur of routine. Although it’s taken time for me to build up some good habits during the day, the nights have become strands of boredom tied together with no purpose.

So today begins a new attempt for more intentional efforts in the evening. Beginning the day setting a small goal for each night with hope that by resting less, I will find a solve for my recent restlessness. This post is my buy-in. Perhaps it will be left unread, but its existence is my accountability coach.

Cerrano’s DIY Curveball Solution

There’s a point when external factors can longer be the delay for unfinished projects or goals. These are the moments when you either realize it’s time to be pragmatic (even if that means the completion point may be extended because you have to learn a new skill before you can get it done) or it’s time to realize that the project or goal had no internal value. The third option is that you convince yourself the project or goal is unattainable; perhaps, or is it that your ego feeding itself to keep you stuck in discomfort.

Forces of Human Nature

Force is an action. A bully pushes you down, and a friend pulls you up. Both actions are the result of a force being applied. Forces exist, but do so without conscious or conscience. Context is everything. Therefore, concepts of good or evil have no meaning to a force. Forces existed in nature long before they were defined – before they were named. A conscious choice attached to an applied force gives it intent – this is humanity. There is humankind and there is human nature. How will you choose to, for lack of a better phrase: use the force?

First Class Levers

When chaos becomes the norm and balance feels unattainable, remember – you are not the fulcrum. You are not a failing figure of a blind Atlas, unable to discriminate between the effort and the load. You are the knowing torque, using your reasoned choice to determine where to place yourself in relation to the effort and the load. This cannot be done from beneath the surface. You have to be in the mix. That is how true balance is achieved. It’s not about being underneath, pushing the fulcrum to a perceived midpoint. It’s not about thinking without seeing – it’s about seeing and then choosing where to move to make situations most efficient to lifting what burdens you most with the least amount of mental effort. If you know right action, you know where to stand – atop the beam where the events of our lives transpire.

End Credits

Perhaps in the future, epitaphs on tombstones will be replaced by scrolling end credits that play on repeat. If so, who will have played the starring roles in your life? Are you in good company? Are these key players heroes, villains, jesters or extras?

The Perspective of Certainty

To tell a toddler that their heart only possesses so many beats, and it’s best not to waste more energy than necessary on tantrums would not land with any recognition of reason. Sadly, the same message is lost on most adults, even when we know better. We bear the burden of reason having dawned on us and yet routinely make it worse by missing the point of what that means, and choosing not to live by means that will better change what we know is certain.

Enter at Your Own Purpose

Before you go all-in, make sure what you’re entering into is wanting for the energy you are about to give. If not, disappointment awaits. Matching energy is sometimes what’s required. It’s not weak to pull-back when there are obvious signs that’s the right move. Sometimes our purpose is to be what a situation needs, not what we want it to be.