" Alone ... "

“ … And the night goes by so very slow

Oh I hope that it won't end though

Alone

But the secret is still my own

Till now I always got by on my own

I never really cared until I met you

And now it chills me to the bone

Alone, alone … “

~ Heart ~ Alone ~ 

***

The origin of the word ALONE comes from the Middle East in around the 1300s, from al all + one one. The word itself can be viewed as all one rather than the sad reference it has today.

Being alone doesn’t mean you are anti-social or unwanted ... some sorry state that is colorless unless reinforced by others … implying the sadness, isolation and longing for companionship. Rather, being alone begins with embracing solitude.  

We recognize the benefits and joys within fulfilling relationships with other people, yet on your own, you begin to grow as a person.  You get a chance to recharge and you get a chance to reflect more.  As we spend time by ourselves, we don’t have to bother with processing the thoughts and feelings of others.  It is a time when we focus inwards.  

… solitude provides the perfect environment for reflection … 

And as we focus inwards, we have a chance to get in touch with our own emotions to gain a greater perspective. Plus create a deeper understanding of what makes us happy and what we really want.  

With this awareness of what you want, you may start doing thing you actually enjoy as well as become more productive with less distractions.  You may even have a sense of independence, confidence in your ability to actually be alone.  The anxiety or burning desire for others begins to fade … and you get some distance from constantly trying to keep other people happy … simply, that constant interaction is not required.  

When we consider the most important relationship is with one self, we must be happy to give happiness to others.  Otherwise we are depleted, drained and have nothing really valuable to offer.  This internal new found happiness has always been within us.  Alone time or solitude allows us gain access to it and to not be concerned with validation or approval. So as we begin a journey of self discovery, we learn to be okay as we are, on our own or if we prefer with others.  That interaction becomes a choice not an obligation or burden, where we can reveal who we really are.

www.walkstrong.ca

" Breaking The Rules ... "

Black sheep and a renegade

Hot feet in the cool of the shade

The street jungle and the tough childhoods

Examinations done no good

Got crow bars and hot wired cars

Sneak thieves and cheap cigars

No rebellion not today

I get my kicks in my own way

Right ok

Just keep on breakin' the rules

C'mon get ready to rule ...

Tough breaks

Ready to rule

I'm gonna do things my own way

Everyday, everyday,

In everyway

I ain't gonna pay no attention to your rules

~ AC/DC ~ Breaking The Rules ~
***

I have read that if you don’t break any rules you will continue to do the same things every day.  Many believe, well that’s how we have always done it, which is the cornerstone for most answers ... 

Yet if we think about it, our rules have consequences.  They cause us to be victims to them.  You see we all have certain rules that run our lives ... dictate whether or not we can feel happiness and success, dictate whether we even feel loved.  And we may not even be aware but some of these rules are designed for us to fail ... subconsciously making us feel bad.

Honestly ask yourself the following questions:

• do your rules contribute to a feeling of not being good enough?  
• what are some of your primary rules for success?  
• do they make sense and are they within your control?  
• are they making you feel good?  
• do you truly feel loved?
• how do you shake the expectations and believes?

Yet we can reach a moment when we get tired of living by all the rules set up by everyone else and decide to do our own thing.  

• we stop being restrained by some man-made code
• we stop becoming rule and code overloaded 

Life is unpredictable, so the opportunity is now to define it how you want it.  Take care of your health. Get rid of friends that bring you down or hold you back.  Surround yourself with real people.  Go against the grain if you wish and enjoy every moment of it.

Sometimes we just need to break our rules, make them easier or adopt new ones.  Instead of relying on other’s rules for meeting our needs, we recreate our own so that we meet our needs the way we want them met.  This way we can ensure that we are not a victim to our own rules or anyone elses ...