Ive been thinking a lot lately about how many levels of perception there are in this life and how each one of us is living to experience something different. The physical appearance of a Mac truck waiting in front of me at a red light had my inner roommate envisioning a whole lifetime movie occurring inside the box bed of that truck. From my perception, it was just a truck, a bunch of metal sitting on top of a bunch of wheels with a human driving in the front. However, the part of me that has watched too many films about kidnapping, raised the thought that there could be a girl in there, named Jessica, whose just been trafficked across the US in the bed of that truck.
Obviously this idea was absurd (... or was it?) but it’s a legitimate scenario that could have existed right in from of me without me even knowing it. Not because I’m stupid, not because I’m blind, but simply because I have a different level of perception of the world around me because of the life I live or in other words, the focus of my awareness is elsewhere. If I had never watched a trafficking film, this thought would probably have never occurred. At that point would I be ignorant to that which is occurring around me if this scenario was really occurring in that truck? Am I expanded and open-minded from watching these kinds of films?
I think about this shit more often than I’d like to admit —the different levels of perception we all observe the world from. Could this be the reason I am so understanding of those around me who see the world differently than I? It’s silly to think I’ve spent a good majority of my life wanting to save people from things I can’t understand because I have not experienced similar experiences as they have to the degree at which they’ve experienced it. I couldn’t understand that in order to fix someone’s life, I have to understand their life first, and the only way to understand their life is to experience their life as they have and unfortunately (and fortunately) that is something I can not and do not have the power to do.
The only life I can experience fully is my own and thinking or attempting to experience another’s life is just a distraction from my own life’s journey, no matter what my intentions are. I’ve come to realize that the act of trying to “save others” or, protect them from that which you can envision turning out poorly, can be more selfish than it is helpful. I couldn’t even imagine, walking up to that truck at a gas station, opening up the doors in an attempt to save the girl 🤯😅
First off, I doubt I’d even get enough time to blink or speak let alone rescue Jessica the second I open those doors, but let’s just say, for the purpose of putting together my thoughts, I am able to rescue her. Once I have her, what would happen if I went straight into trying to fix her life? Changed her clothes, got her a job, put her up in her own place, etc..?
She’d probably run.
Why?
Because I’m trying to give her the life I see as being suitable for my person. I have no idea where this woman came from, where she’s lived, how she has dressed, who her biggest influencers are —I don’t know any of that. So what could I do? Without any of the material things in my life, all I really have is my presence so I suppose I could offer her that?
Personally I feel like the presence of an individual is often underutilized as one of the best things you can offer another human being.
All of us walk around with this body and brain full of thoughts. If you’re lucky, in short form, you do enough talking in your life that you get sick of hearing your own voice and you realize that silence is key to growing and expanding your overall being. You realize the more you open your mouth, the more you repeat yourself and talk about unnecessary shit, but the more you listen, the more new things you can take in and use to better your human and those around you (and the more you’ll have to talk about- weird how that works). But some of us, go through our lives not having a platform to get all of this out. No one holds this space for us to openly share what’s going on inside or maybe we don’t trust anyone enough to open up. These are the people who talk alllllll the time. Just to hear themselves talk. (I’ve been one of those people! She lives inside me for sure!) I notice them mostly in bars, and these are typically the people I hold space for. The ones most don’t want to listen to. Mostly because I see this desperate need to get it all out. And most of us never cross that line of superficial talk and depth talk. In other words, we either choose to talk about superficial shit, like tv shows, game days, shopping, new trends, etc.. or we choose to talk about deeper things, like emotions, spiritually, our shadow, our brains, our pain, our joy, etc.
Many of us spend way too much time talking about superficial shit, and many of us only accept superficial talk from others. But there are those (also me) who hold this space for others, who hold space for someone long enough for them to feel safe enough to slowly walk across the line of superficial to depth. That’s where the good stuff is. I’ve had many people say to me, “why do you sit there and listen to _________ talk? They’re such a drag,” but to me, it’s only a drag if you take in what their saying as your own. If you just offer the space and you don’t attach any emotions or feelings to what they’re talking about (like we are conditioned to) then what you’re doing is offering a service that should be worth millions.
You are essentially offering the space to enlightenment. This is something I had a hard time with when I first started doing it. I had a hard time not attaching emotions and feelings to others stories and in turn, I’d absorb their energies and become absorbed in living their life essentially, or rather, their experience of life. I’m still learning how to protect my energy and block others, but everything is a practice and I know, I’m time, it will become an effortless reaction.
Space is a gifted superpower we have all been given. Just listen to the silence in between the noise, that is where you live. That is where we all live. That is where we grow. Offer the gift of space to someone you know or even a complete stranger, you never know who is on what level of perception of life, but that doesn’t matter anyway, offer space to everyone —including yourself. Learning to protect my energy is one of my life’s most favorited (and used!) tools.
So, Jessica, if you’re out there, and not just in this brain of mine, I want you to know, I can’t save you, but I will offer you the space to get all the superficial shit out out so you can reveal the depth and beauty that is beneath it all and save yourself. Extending this offer to anyone else on this level of perception who could is it ❤️
Cosmic Peace and Love,
The Cope Dealer 🧠
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