Somnambulism: Time to Wake Up

I’ve written about somnambulism before–sleep walking–as referred to going through life unconsciously. These are the people going through life unaware of what is going on around them, going through the motions to get through another day. I’d started becoming a victim to this as well..part of me clinging to life when I could.

I’m reminded that I have been living this way when I read an article by Maria Popova on Brain Pickings titled “How to Avoid Work: A 1949 Guide to Doing What You Love.” She shares an excerpt from William J. Reilly’s book “How to Avoid Work” that is a great metaphor for people lulled to sleep by work:

Most [people] have the ridiculous notion that anything they do which produces an income is work — and that anything they do outside ‘working’ hours is play. There is no logic to that. […]

Your life is too short and too valuable to fritter away in work.

If you don’t get out now, you may end up like the frog that is placed in a pot of fresh water on the stove. As the temperature is gradually increased, the frog feels restless and uncomfortable, but not uncomfortable enough to jump out. Without being aware that a chance is taking place, he is gradually lulled into unconsciousness.

Much the same thing happens when you take a person and put him in a job which he does not like. He gets irritable in his groove. His duties soon become a monotonous routine that slowly dulls his senses. As I walk into offices, through factories and stores, I often find myself looking into the expressionless faces of people going through mechanical motions. They are people whose minds are stunned and slowly dying.

While I wasn’t at the extreme of the frog, I was (am, but have put in my notice) in a job at work, numb, slowly dying and very unhappy. I’d seek happiness and freedom on my time off and on the weekends only to slowly die Sunday evening as the dread of working on Monday started again.

Ironically, my spark comes from generating spark in others, awakening them and activating their purpose. Seeing them light up energetically–now that is exciting!

Life purpose is most often related to your greatest struggle, I’ve heard many spiritual business leaders say. Learning and overcoming that struggle is what you teach to others. So is this my teaching to others? It seems related to emotional traumas, which involves waking up the sleeping and dead parts of self that served as protection.

Ah, but wait! At this time, I do not need to have all the answers. Now that is a whole other topic.