Rocky Balboa: What's crazy about standing toe to toe and saying "I am"?
In the movie 'Kiss Kiss Bang Bang' starring Robert Downey Jr. (Harry) there is a funny and quite insightful scene set in a Los Angeles bar. After another completely superficial conversation with a young actress/model, Harry becomes befuddled with the lack of authentic connections to be made in the Land Where Dreams Come True. (kinda, sorta-really depends on how many lottery tickets you can afford lol) After asking the bartender for another round of libations, he grabs a menu off the bar table and with more than a hint of sarcasm begins this short rant...........
Harry: [continuing] I mean, it's literally like someone took America by the East Coast and *shook* it, and all the normal girls managed to hang on.
And it sparked an 'inside' joke that my buddies and I used to say after many of our dates that goes something like this.
BUDDY: So how'd the date go last night?!?
ME: She was absolutely gorgeous. Drop dead dude.......
BUDDY: Really?!? But.... You don't seem all that jazzed ..
ME: Yeah, well let's just say she was all in on herself!
BUDDY: Oh NO! --- So fifteen minutes all about her....
ME: Yup!! And then finally stopping to say "That's enough about ME! SO tell me,
what do YOU think about me?!?"
AND SCENE..... LOL ( According to my many LA girlfriends, the same holds truth for them)
Now don't get me wrong. I absolutely love Los Angeles and my decade of cascading through every inch of its various artistic and very open minded inhabitants! And you'd actually be surprised at how many Truth Seekers are rooted within its not always grounded fabric. However, I'd be more than remiss to not acknowledge the fact that -Harry- and his brash declaration about many of LA's residents was more than movie moxie. It was an astute observation of a consciousness (both male and female) that reflects our ME SOCIETY.
Unfortunately, this obsession with 'ME' is much more far reaching than La LA Land. It's insidious grasp has taken hold of this country's genetic makeup. And it shows no signs of stopping. While technology is certainly contributing to this malady (selfies, Facebook posting, Instagram posing, Twitter- I love ya but I don't need to know all you inner monologues LOL) this issue has caused a crack in our communal connections. Our desires are becoming more and more egocentric. We are chasing false idols like fame and materialistic STUFF that give us quick hits of pleasure. But, not unlike any addict, this causes a 'Chasing the Dragon' mind-set. Always looking for the NEXT BEST THING to fill the emptiness within our hearts and souls.
Those of you who have been consistently reading my blog have certainly realized by now that YOU ARE ALL SUPERHEROES!! And that means you have awoken from your slumber and have heard your unique Call to Adventure!! You've mustered up the COURAGE to follow this path completely -Made To Order- by your personal WISDOM WAITER! And as Joseph Campbell said, "The privilege of a lifetime is being who you are." For your Superhero's Journey is unlike anyone else's! And the Magical Transformation awaiting you will BE the foundation upon which your Legacy will be built to be shared with US ALL!!
But therein lies the paradox that is a serious threat to our collective PURPOSE. We have become so blinded by a consumer based mentality. I often joke that we go to the mall to buy stuff that we think will make us feel MORE THAN the next time we go the mall to buy MORE STUFF. And RINSE AND REPEAT! LOL
As a reminder, WE ALL SHARE THE SAME PURPOSE!! And that is to BE in Loving service to ALL! And that includes BEING of service to yourSELF first and foremost. For we can only give away that which we already have. Tending to our own passions and desires is the first step toward the process of expanding our Super Heroic Higher Selves which serves not only the preverbal- ME- but also the collective WE! It's a Gi-normous WIN - WIN!! Plus, being a martyr leaves most bloody and alone. NO THANKS, RIGHT!
But the last time I checked, unconscious zombies have absolutely NO interest in anything but themselves! Let's face it my New Age Nerds, we are all seeking a life filled with daily bursts of bliss. Which is the term for unadorned peace, joy and love! YES, PLEASE! And there continues to be mounting scientific evidence that true, long lasting happiness comes rooted of being in Loving service to ourselves and one another.
In the new book 'How of Happiness' , professor Sonja Lyubomirsky, PhD has compiled some juicy and telling data about what exactly injects us with the huge helping of Happiness we all seek. Because of our adaptation toward a hedonistic nature, only 10% of our Happiness depends on us getting the STUFF we desire. JUST 10% my peeps!! It provides us with a temporary high that dissipates very quickly. That means the other 90% must be derived from other sources. WINK!!
But us awakened SUPERHEROES already know what the remedy to this very vital issue is. For every master who has ever set foot in this world has spread the same not so SECRET recipe toward the answer to our inner salvation. From Jesus the Christ to Martin Luther King, Jr. And lest us not forget Gandhi, Mother Teresa, and the Buddha. Their message was to BE A LOVING SERVANT!!
As one of my greatest Heroes Napoleon Hill said, "Success in life depends upon happiness, and happiness is found in NO other way than Service that is rendered in a spirit of LOVE."
Advanced neuroscience studies are proving that by caring for the needs of others actually causes tremendous advances in our own transformations into greater versions of the Super Heroic Higher Selves that reside within! In the book, 'The Happy Hero', author Solitaire Townsend has studied these modern scientific studies and argues that the most powerful and longest lasting path to a happy and fulfilling life is to dedicate ourselves to serving others. The same studies show that serving others improves our own health and well being as well as life longevity! Pretty groovy stuff, huh!
I believe that as SUPERHEROES, it is our responsibility to assist in awakening the souls on this planet who have been programmed that the path to happiness is ALL ABOUT ME. As with any disruptive cause, the first step starts with YOU!! For starters, I would like to invite you all to begin a new habit of spreading a gesture of LOVE to at least one person each and every day. Before you get all- C'mon Jeff- that's asking an awful lot- let me assure you that it's often the smallest of gestures that can awaken someone from their unconscious slumber. TRUST!! To make things a little easier, here are some suggestions you can try for starters:
Lending a non judgemental ear...
Telling someone how much they matter...
Making someone laugh...
Sharing YOUR story with someone who could benefit from your Wisdom
Be someone's calm during their storm....
Tell someone that you BELIEVE in them...Until they BELIEVE too...
Send someone a kind text 'JUST BECAUSE".....
Inspire someone with your unique SUPER POWERS .....
Tell someone ......I LOVE YOU.....
I assure you that by practicing these small gestures, you will slowly start to chip away the MUCK that has overtaken and blocked these misled SOULS from remembering who they really are and why they are here. Did you know it's been proven that the 'LOVE HORMONE' oxytocin increases dramatically during acts of KINDNESS toward ourSELVES and others? What amazing proof of that which we give away comes back to us in spades! Plus, through these gestures, you automatically become a member of the Super Hero group known as THE LEGION OF LOVE!! Your T-shirt and pin are in the mail!! ;0)
Just as we all share the same PURPOSE, it is in our unique CALLING that the fun really begins! For just as our PURPOSE is the BEINGNESS of our Hero's Journey, our CALLING is the DOINGNESS!! Our CALLING is the manner in which we leave our comfort zones and stretch ourselves. Thus transforming us into Super Humans capable of - well, absolutely anything we can imagine! With the gift of free will, the world becomes our playground where we can experiment and FOLLOW OUR BLISS!!
And this is where the real MIRACLES begin! Because as you fulfill your Calling, the byproduct is the bounty of gifts it shares with US ALL! That business you started that solves a problem many of us are in desperate need of! Writing that book which inspires "oh so many " to face their fears and transform their lives back towards LOVE! Becoming the teacher that changes the trajectory of a new generation! Even starting the family you so yearned for and shaping your children to become beacons of light for others! What starts out as you fulfilling your desired destiny, ultimately morphs into a new Paradigm of ME=WE!! And you thought any notion of being a part of changing the World was pure fodder... As if!!! ;0)
So whaddya say my fellow New Age Nerds...... Will you help yourSELF and others in starting a new disruptive Super Heroic Mass Movement?!? The #ME=WE message!
As I said earlier, I invite and challenge you to begin with just ONE small gesture a day.
Who is with me...... ;0)
BE SUPER HEROIC!
Nerdmaste,
Jeffrey Louis Martinez
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