Over the last few years I’ve been taking a back seat in life, learning to live in the marvellous abandonment of ‘flow’. Happy and open to all that life brings forth. It’s a spiritual practice, that uses concepts such as, “I try not to have any likes and dislikes”, “it’s karma” or “there’s no such thing as good and bad, only life experience”. On the whole it’s been quite a pleasant time, I’ve become accustomed to dwelling less in the anger of retribution and I’m more able to look past the uncomfortable, in favour of understanding and acceptance. Flow is a beautiful energy that comes from a place of quiet unfolding. Throughout the years, it has certainly brought out a more compassionate and less reactive self. But ‘in the flow’ has started to present it’s darker more subtler side, which now bring my current philosophies into question…

‘Living in the flow’ isn’t particularly an actionable energy. Over time you could find yourself waking up one morning, wondering how you went from that city slicker over-run with responsibilities, to somebody who’s blissfully; not got too much going on. When you’re in the flow your tolerance will be sky high, but if you flow ‘too’ much you can find that what once defined you as a person is gradually eroding away. Flow is a naturally giving energy, but as the universe continues to take… you may likely find that there are some things in life that need to be corrected. Form needs boundary, and in order to exist as a healthy entity it is always necessary to enter into the productive state of give and take, ebb and flow.

There is an art to cultivating happiness and I have found that a pair of Zen tinted glasses have been a wonderful tool, ‘fake it till you make it’ never felt so good. While ‘taking it on the chin’, is in many ways a mature response to conflict and a good show of mental resilience, hitting back when needed can provide refreshingly positive results, not to mention the moral boost of winning. I have found that in recent provocative situations, a sudden burst of assertion where necessary, never felt better or proved more positive. Because at the end of the day, fairs fair and it feels good to claim back what is rightfully yours.

The culmination of these years finally made sense, after an experience on none-other than a trip on the local bus (a seemingly good place for life changing moments), where I spotted an adorable critter on my hand. After identifying it as a red ant, I continued to let it walk all over me, until the inevitable happened and it bit me, leaving behind a painful itch that I’d rather have done without. Now I know what red ants are about, I could have protected myself and stopped the creature in it’s tracks... there really wasn’t any need to wait around for the hurt and pain that said ants can cause, but I was ‘in the flow’, just waiting for it to happen.

Flow is a noble feeling that employs an element of fearlessness, but I’ve come to realise that sometimes there is just no reason to let another annoying ba*tard (however adorable) walk all over you and leave behind another painful scar you’d rather have done without.
When you’re in free flow, you experience the loss of form and the defining substance of what once made you. Some say that this state is the ultimate goal of enlightenment. The merging of mind and body into the unity of the great cosmos… But as it happens, I’m not ready for that yet. I’m living in the material world and I need to regain control of my material boundaries. The mindset of flow has been a wonderful journey that has taught me so much. But it is now time to start redressing life’s natural balance of what I want and who I am as a person.

Matthew 5:39

If someone slaps you on the right cheek, turn your other cheek to him as well.