Sunday, January 27, 2008

Id vs. Ego

Well, I guess I'm not finished for the day as I seem to be traveling back this way again. I watched an episode of Ellen while I was in NM and she had Wayne Dyer as her guest. Of course, I love these spiritual conversations and the hoopla can be all over the place, but I like Dyer so far. Ellen said that she looked to his books and audios a while back for some help in getting through a personal roadblock and one message was to "let go of Ego". Mr Dyer's response was that the one mantra he would suggest for anyone was "I want to feel good." And so, this got me thinking...did we get the wrong message in grade school? Or too much of the right one? I remember that "Id" was the bad guy...the one who ran around the park and bullied folks because "he" could, the kid too concerned with "his" own motivations and not concerned enough with those of others, the selfish person constantly looking out for "his" own welfare. And Ego...was the pleasant mediator, the referee, the peacemaker. While SuperEgo...well, we won't even discuss that. But, my point in thinking is this....if we, I, you, us, strip away the Ego do we feel good? Do we make adult actions that create our own harmony? Do we become all that we can be? And if so...where does the Ego belong? Only in the systems that make operations within society? Is our personal experience so different from those social agendas? Although, I did not hear Mr. Dyer equate the two in this manner, I think he may be on to something. It is believeable (at least to me) that the human structure differs substantially from the social one. That is not to say that I encourage chaos or savagery (see strange leadership throughout history) but I like that idea for living a life that makes me feel good and trusting others to do the same. And I know that there are people who live this way already...skillfully. But, I have never been that way. I have always been invested in the big picture, in the people around me, in the idea that what I do or don't do makes a difference. And it would now appear that I could tune in to my self, choose ideas that I am in tune with and I will be invested differently in the big picture, the people around me and I will make a difference to me. Sometimes, I feel painfully slow at life. I got a difficult start, and that's what I'll say in my own defense. I am thankful, nonetheless, for each voice that I've heard, and each heart that has reached out to me. I have grown so much, and learned a lot. I like this new plan though...it would mean letting go of so much stuff. A leaner load sounds pretty inviting.

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