Monday, July 9, 2012

181. Alive

The five seconds after a crushing CrossFit WOD.  A life changing conversation.  Make up sex.  Heights.  The company of a beautiful woman.  Swimming in the ocean.  Revelations about self.  Giving birth to an idea.  That moment when they kiss you back.  Running down hill.  The first sip of hot strong coffee in the morning.  A broken heart.  Writing.
These are some of the things that make me feel alive.

What are yours?

The difference between feeling good and feeling alive is fear.  We are not afraid of things that make us feel good.  A safe job, a comfortable relationship, twenty minutes on a treadmill.  These things don’t require much effort.  We are not afraid of them.  But if you want to feel alive, there must be an element of fear.  We might get injured.  We might lose money.  We might be rejected, labeled, or fired.  We might be wrong.  But with risk comes reward.  Feeling good is not enough.  It keeps us trapped in a bubble.  Good falls on our lap.  Alive doesn’t.  If we want to feel alive, we must chase it or we will start to feel dead.
   
The monotony of your daily life combined with the pressures from work and relationships can put you in an emotional coffin.  If you want to break out, you must seek what pumps your heart.  From the moment you wake up to the second you fall asleep.  Little things, big things, it doesn’t matter.  It’s not about the activity.  It’s about the process of facing your fears.  Ask that girl out.  Stand up to your boss.  Publish a book.  Start a blog.  Pick up a guitar.  Eat something you wouldn’t.  Go somewhere foreign.  Get out of your comfort zone.  Explore your edges.  Turn your dial from good to alive.  This stretch will change your life.  Shatter the fishbowl you live in.  If you’re content with good, content is all you’ll ever be.  

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