Compassion for Your Actions

So I will preface this entire section--and really, the rest of this article--by saying that there are lots of other delightful moments throughout the journey. If there weren't, I would never bother to complete one! It just so happens that the first fifteen minutes often ends up being my favorite memory. Something magical happens when you take the first few steps down a new path you've never explored before. It's like entering a world you didn't know existed, made up of a combination of terrain you've never set foot on and landscapes you've never seen. Here they are: The whole doctrine of action can be expressed in two articles, each of which contains a single word. The order, which people find surprising, expresses almost the whole idea. Two words: continue, start. In this order: one idea. You just have to continue, rather than start. Nice knowing you--short but sweet. Try to be happy. For those who have decided to stick around a bit for further enlightenment, I have a confession to make. The first thing I read by Alain was his Propos sur le bonheur (On Happiness), which I borrowed from the municipal library in Hyeres-les-Palmiers, the summer before my last year of school. I was hoping for abstractions and big ideas. Maybe I could have even helped my aunt before she did it again. I feel betrayed by my father and grandmother for not sharing what was happening with me, and upset at my aunt for not reaching out to me. More than anything, I'm really angry at everyone for not being honest with me. Now, I'll never know who to believe again. One of the tenets of family function is counting on the people you love.

Regaining a sense of trust that may now be shaky or gone is the first step in restoring a sense of family. Here is some dialogue that might help Marcy and her father and grandmother begin to reestablish their shared trust: Marcy: We need to talk. I don't think that the two of you realize how upset I am about Aunt Mary's suicide. Not just her death and how she died, but how you handled it with me. Neuroscience is the way to know the ultimate causes by which human behaviors and behavior move and is governed. Knowing how our brain works makes us freer. Neuroscience will help you understand and understand (which is not the same as justifying yourself). Neuroscience is creating a building where the truth of each mental process is sought, no matter how sublime it is and that building is shaped like a brain. That some do not worry about this panorama since between brick and brick of this magnificent construction, there are still slits that can be conveniently filled with ideology paste. Our mind has a unique peculiarity that the difference from other parts of nature that surrounds us is the part of the world that we occupy ourselves. Highly Sensitive Person (HSP) is a term that is understood as someone who sees the world on a deep sensory level. The scientific term is known as Sensory-Processing Sensitivity (SPS) and has been misunderstood for some time until recent years. It has been discovered that as many as 15 - 20% of people in the entire population experience this type of sensitivity to the world. It is a type of survival strategy in which observations are the priority rather than reactions. New territory, therefore, requires you to use all your senses because you can't get by on muscle memory when you're exploring it. Every step demands that you look down, and then up and all around, so you know where you're going and what you must do in order to get there. Do you need to watch out for tree roots or rocks? Try not to slip in mud? Understand the depth of the carved-out stairs?

And are you wearing the right footwear? Once you're a little more comfortable with the physical challenge, you can then start to appreciate the sights and sounds around you. Like how the sunlight sparkles like a disco ball as you walk through the trees, or how it beautifully backlights plants and flowers on an open path. Or how the sound of water trickling near the base of a mountain fills you with excitement at the idea that you might find a waterfall the farther up you go. And the animals! I was disappointed. It consisted merely of platitudes, life guidance, barely concrete examples. It was several years before I was able to revise my preconceived ideas and properly appreciate the subtlety of his thinking, which some people considered too well written to be profound. No effort you make to be happy is ever wasted. You have to have lived a little to appreciate that kind of aphorism, don't you think? Happiness is easy, it's within your grasp, Alain tells us. This is not an obvious idea: our experience is, in fact, usually the opposite. We all know that nothing is easy. Don't we all dream of ease precisely because it is impossible? Feeling weak, no flair, no inspiration? I'm 17 years old. I'm not a child. And yet you've kept things from me as if I were a little kid. Father: I was only trying to protect you. Mental illness and suicide are scary subjects.

I didn't want to upset your schoolwork or your social life. You're always so happy and positive. I didn't think you needed Aunt Mary's pile of problems. Grandmother: I'm really the one who discouraged your father from telling you. When I was your age, we didn't talk about mental illness and people trying to kill themselves. Highly sensitive people are able to read between the lines and see what is not being said or feel what is not being expressed. The brain is wired differently for these people and makes the person be able to reflect on the world and situations in a deeper and more personal way. The Aspects of the Highly Sensitive Personality Because of this deepened state of thinking, it is very easy for highly sensitive people to become overwhelmed easily as they are taking in more information all the time. There is no way to turn off the sensory levels to take a break from the bombardment. There has been a misconception about the personality traits of people with SPS. Because they would be more cautious before getting into new situations or environments, they were labeled as shy. However, shyness is not an innate trait; After further studies of this personality trait, it proved that there was a misunderstanding that people with SPS were, in fact introverted. However, the studies had shown that as much as 30% of HSP are extroverted. There is nothing quite like seeing a new animal for the first time, and when you're in its natural habitat no less. I've still never seen a moose (which makes me sad and think they should probably take away my Canadian passport). But the first time I saw an elk in Squamish, the sheer size of it took my breath away. Spotting an adorable little chipmunk for the first time, on the first peak of the Stawamus Chief, caused the same reaction. Even if you've seen and heard similar things before, no two hikes are exactly the same, so it all comes as a surprise.

The element of surprise is also what makes the beginning of opting out feel as though you're on the right track. Like when you decide to change your diet and notice how many options actually are available at your favorite restaurants and stores, which suddenly makes it feel all the more doable. Or when you've been logged off of social media for a few days and start to recognize how good it feels to be present with the people you spend time with in real life. Or when you decide to move to a new city or town and you find a park or coffee shop or grocery store that you know you're going to love. It doesn't always happen in literally the first fifteen minutes, of course, but keep your eyes and ears open in those early days. Lacking the energy required to take decisions? Run out of ideas on how to solve a particular problem, or more generally just don't know what to do with your life? Living and acting are easier than you think. And this is from a man who likes to work. Alain is no dilettante, no slacker. He's a man of action as well as a philosopher. He is not telling us to stop trying, he just explains where to direct our efforts. It's quite simple: Everything's already started, we just have to continue. Just accept yourself where you are now, with whatever you are about to do next. All resolutions for the future are imaginary. It was all hushed up. I thought it would be better if you didn't know what was going on. Marcy: But this is the twenty-first century! I am so angry about this. I loved Aunt Mary very much.