So the other day I was talking to a good friend of mine, and it got me thinking about one of my practices that I feel has changed my life in a lot of ways. I think it’s something that could really benefit everyone on a big and small scale, whether you take it completely seriously, or just have fun with it.
What I am talking about is having impossible goals. This is something that anyone can choose to do, no matter who you are or where you are from, regardless of your circumstances or your income, or your status. To me, the whole point of life is to enjoy the journey of it, to live freely in the present without being chained to worries of the future, or regret from the past. But how do you set yourself up to have that kind of journey? If you’re working 40-50 hours a week, bummed and stressed, and just feel like the journey has become an endless repetition of this cycle created by society to keep us cuffed, where can you find it?
For me, I have always found freedom and adventure in impossible dreams. And I’m legit talking about something that to YOU should feel preposterous. And when I say set an impossible dream, I don’t just mean say it. Follow it. Chase it. Believe it is possible no matter what ANYONE else says. There is strength in that! Talk about it, share your passion about it, and I think you’ll find something start to change within you. You’ll begin to take little moments of your day to read about it, to research and learn, you might even adjust your diet and exercise routine to adapt towards it. This is the beginning of change, which we all know to be a very healthy thing. Either way, this I know for sure: The greatest adventures in life almost always come from the pursuit of something that once seemed impossible. And who is anyone to tell anyone that something is or isn’t possible?
Don’t let other people, or most importantly, yourself, hold you down.
It is best to assume the perspective that we have ONE LIFE. That way, no matter what happens afterwards, you did not squander it. Cherish it.
The rad thing about having impossible dreams is that it trains your mind to start thinking in a different way. Just because you are an adult does not for a second mean that you are done learning, done growing, done changing. Society would have you believe that, but don’t let the hypnotism fool you. You will learn to analyze different situations and not necessarily back away from things you might have immediately turned a cold shoulder to before. That’s called courage. And I know you have it.
I have been trying to learn how to levitate since I was 14 years old. Yeah, straight up levitation. I’ve researched many things, attempted long meditations, and once tried so hard to mentally move a lighter that I fainted and woke up on the ground. I’ll be in Nepal in February, and you better believe I’ll be training with the monks to see if they have any insight into doing this. Sure, it seems ridiculous. But so did flying in the sky 200 years ago. So did going to the moon 100 years ago. And so did talking on a device halfway around the world 50 years ago. Everything that we know of is made of energy is it not? Why should it be crazy to assume we could learn to harness and control that energy? The greatest barrier for mankind is a barrier that we ourselves create. We let those around us deem something is impossible, and therefore accept it. But what if you don’t? What if you fight back against it? Who knows what you’ll find, but I bet you it is damn worth it.
I originally started climbing because of a petrifying fear of heights. When I was 23, I decided that I was going to face all of my fears one by one, and so I did, and over the years, I got to the harder, more deep-rooted ones, many of which are entirely psychological. When I started climbing, I set my heart on Half Dome in Yosemite. That for me, was an impossible dream. Just watching someone climb it through a computer screen could bring a soft sweat to my palms. However, I knew only by challenging one of the biggest things out there, would I fully expose myself to my fear. Only then could I truly feel like I had faced it, embraced it, and let it go. And now, 4 years later, I feel myself steadily progressing closer and closer to that goal. It’s starting to not seem so impossible after all. And every time I feel like it is just way out of my league, I tell myself that where I am currently, once also felt entirely out of my league, and that by the time I get to the point where I am climbing that big beautiful wall, I bet I’ll be comfortable, and I bet I’ll be smiling, and I’ll know deep down in my heart that nothing is impossible, that the only difficulty lies in convincing your mind that it truly can be done.
Rene Descartes once said, “I think, therefore I am.”
Recently I heard something a little different, and it was, “I am aware that I think, therefore I am.” Do you ever find yourself watching yourself think? Are you aware that you think? That is a fine separation between the mind and something else. The mind is bound by the environment and society by which you were raised, but our consciousness is not, and we live in this illusion that keeps us chained from the most beautiful things in life. Sometimes, you have to trick your mind into believing something that it won’t. It can be done. And the first step is choosing to do something ridiculous, something that defies logic, defies your mind: perhaps have impossible dreams?
Do you wanna be an Astronaut? To surf big waves? To see the Northern Lights? Write a book? Be an actress? Whatever these things are, they will not seem impossible to everyone, but what is important is that they feel impossible to you, and the greatest thing you can do for yourself is wake up, look in the mirror, and tell yourself that you’re going to chase it. For you, and you alone.
Cheers,
Bodhi