My Way is Mine – Your Way is Yours – Is There Common Ground?
Just because my way is mine doesn’t mean we can’t find some common ground (within reason).
We are closing in on having 8 billion people on this planet. Let me write that out – that’s 8,000,000,000 people.
Let’s say you know, personally, 100 people total. Maybe not well, but for the sake of argument, it’s a good round number. That means that you know 0.00000000125 of the total number of people on this planet. That’s a SUPER small number of people.
Each of those people has their own way of thinking, feeling, perceiving, and experiencing life. That’s one hundred unique points of view and ways to be. Now – multiply that by eighty million (80,000,000) times. That is how many unique, singular perspectives there are in the world.
Within that vast number of people, there is a collective consciousness. That’s when a group of individuals shares certain beliefs, perspectives, perceptions, ideologies, and the like. Almost all of them are founded on artificial divisions and perceptions.
Some are literal. Skin color, sex, height, weight, and so on. But most are figurative – religion, nationality, career, politics, etc.
For the most part, the collective consciousness is a benign aspect of the fabric of reality. Unfortunately, it can be radicalized, weaponized, and used to sway people to disregard reason and logic in favor of fear and opinion. Then you get rioters following the ideals of a demagogue that are – factually – against their own best interests.
There is nothing you and I can do on that scale of the world. All our control exists wholly and entirely with ourselves. My way is mine and your way is yours. But we can – as individuals – find and/or create common ground.
Being responsible and accountable for ourselves
We live in a society that loves blame. There is a love affair with taking ZERO responsibility for anything and everything.
Need I point to Trump as the most obvious example of this? Right at the top, there’s someone utterly unable to be accountable for jack shit. And this form of trickle-down tends to be the only one that works (unlike economics, for example).
Because of this and too many other examples – we tend to avoid accountability like a plague. This is an ironic phrase presently – since many are NOT taking necessary precautions to avoid a plague. But I digress.
The point is that placing blame for this, that, or the other thing is all-too-common and accepted. Go ahead, blame your parents for the actions they did (or maybe didn’t do) forty years ago. That’ll fix it all right up.
Except, of course, it won’t. Blame passes the buck. The avoidance of responsibility and accountability leaves you with zero control.
My way is mine and your way is yours. That doesn’t mean we are – or should be – working against one another. That’s because we are NOT in competition.
Let me reiterate. WE ARE NOT IN COMPETITION. Recognizing this truth helps you see how being responsible and accountable for your life experience gives you control of it.
What I seek on my path in life is similar to others – but not the same. What you seek in your path in life is similar to others – but not the same. The end is NOT a scarce, lacking thing – whether tangible or intangible. This is an abundant Universe and there is more than enough for everyone.
When you are accountable for yourself you gain insight about not just yourself – but your place in this crazy world.
My way is mine, your way yours, common ground
There has been a lot of talk about finding common ground in politics recently. It’s a rather interesting message – particularly as it comes from a place of utter bullshit.
Sorry, can’t help it – this is going to get political. When you’ve spent 4 years calling one side un-American; lots of schoolyard names like “libtards” and “snowflakes”; and demonizing the other side – requesting equity and unity is utterly hypocritical. You’ve spat, pissed, and shit all over the common ground – now you get to lie in that mess you made.
When we step back away from the big picture crap like above, you and I have a much better chance of finding common ground. As individuals, my way is mine and your way is yours – but the two can meet in the middle.
That is, so long as neither of our ways denies the other person’s, harms the other person’s or is otherwise destructive.
We can disagree on politics, for example. But unless you see the faults on your side (and trust me – I see the faults with the party I tend to align with) there won’t be a middle ground. If you throw your lot in with haters, science deniers, and generally selfish people there’s no common ground to be found.
Common ground comes from first being accountable for who YOU are. I know who I am, for example. Also, I know my faults, weaknesses, and blind spots. When you are not accountable for these aspects of yourself you’ve already closed off any potential for finding common ground.
This is deeply unfortunate – and utterly disempowering. This is why so many of our so-called leaders LOVE disempowering people as much as they can.
Empowered people are in control
One of the best ways to control the lives of other people is to tell them they are incapable of doing it themselves. Convince them that your way, your plan, is the only salvation available. Otherwise, they’ll suffer. And NOBODY wants to suffer.
To quote Paulo Coelho from The Alchemist,
“Tell your heart that the fear of suffering is worse than the suffering itself.”
Often, our so-called leaders want you wholly focused on your fear of suffering. That way, you’ll be disempowered and willing to cede control of your life to them.
And because blame is so rampant – it’s easy after you do something stupid – that they encouraged – and to blame them and take no responsibility. Which disempowers you even further.
The only person in your head is YOU. Thus, you are empowered to take control of your life experience.
This is easiest done via mindfulness. Knowing, in the now, your conscious thoughts, feelings, actions, and intentions reports to your inner being – your mindset/headspace/psyche – what you are experiencing. If you learn you’re not in control – you gain the ability to take control.
Empowered people control their own lives. When you do that you take the wheel and drive the bus.
My way is mine and your way is yours
The point of all this is that we live in an abundant Universe. Ergo, there is more than enough room, resources, potential, opportunities, and whatnot for both our paths. For ALL our paths, in truth.
Even if there is little common ground to be found between us – we can respect one another and take paths with no aim to deny, harm, or otherwise hurt each other. I have no interest in denying you what you desire in your life – and you should have a similar feeling.
Almost 8 billion people are coexisting in one way or another on this planet. That’s a lot of unique, singular perceptions of life, the Universe, and everything. But this is an abundant Universe – and there is more than enough of everything for everyone.
Don’t fall for the blame or the messages of lack and scarcity that are frequently employed to disempower and hold control in the hands of the few.
Just because my way is mine and your way is yours doesn’t mean we can’t find some common ground (within reason).
Do you see how my way and your way can (and do) both exist together and apart?
This is the four-hundred and seventy-third exploration of my Pathwalking philosophy. These weekly essays are ideas for – and my personal experiences with – mindfulness and walking along a chosen path of life to consciously create reality.
I share this journey as part of my desire to make a difference in this world along the way. Additionally, I desire to empower myself and my readers with conscious reality creation.
Thank you for joining me. Feel free to re-blog and share this.
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