“So, there are two ways to live: you can devote your life to staying in your comfort zone, or you can work on your freedom.” Michael A. Singer, The Untethered Soul
There is nothing wrong with being comfortable. I enjoy the comfort of an easy chair, ottoman and a good book…dinner with friends and family…a warm, cozy fire with the one I love. The comfort zone Michael is talking about doesn’t have anything to do with these kinds of comforts. Our comfort zone is not about being comfortable in the physical sense…it refers to the zone in which we live our life where we feel totally safe.
Nothing wrong with feeling safe. But the kind of safe I’m referring to, again, has nothing to do with safety in the physical sense. The kind of safe that keeps us in our comfort zone is the one we have created in our mind. This idea of staying safe…no matter what…keeps us trapped. The edge of our comfort zone is the boundary beyond which we prefer not to tread. Because we are not willing to go beyond our edges…this is how we lose our freedom.
Michael says that when you approach these edges you have feelings of insecurity, jealousy, fear, self-consciousness. The edges are the place of self-doubt, the fear of being hurt, rejected, judged, ridiculed, ignored. Staying in our comfort zone we are less likely to fail, come in last or worry about what someone else says about us. It just seems easier to stay inside these boundaries we have drawn for ourselves.
The other choice we have is to work on our freedom…to work on pushing through and beyond the artificial edges that we have created. Is freedom what you want in your life…the freedom to live with passion, enthusiasm, confidence and courage?
Living spiritually is about living without artificial boundaries. It is about trusting that standing up to fears and insecurities will allow us to lean into life and gently escape to the next edge…and a greater sense of the possibilities for our life.
Whatever edge you encounter today…lean into it, be with it, know that there is freedom in the choice to go beyond it. You will be amazed at the power you feel when you live at the edge!
Peace always
Paula
One Response
Paula,
This post really resonated with me this morning as I face some challenges in my day.
Thank you for reminding me of the possibilities in the unknown and for helping me
to embrace them.
I think of you often, miss your smiling face, and hope you are thriving in your new
life.
Standing on the edge,
with love, Debby