Pollyanna and Sisyphus

I have been accused of having a Pollyannaish approach to life.  Being positive and optimistic most of the time and making an effort of seeing the best no matter what the circumstances is what helped me land that perception.  In theory, the Pollyanna principle is about being positive at an unconscious level yet negative at an unconscious one.  In practice, being positive requires harmony between the unconscious and conscious mind.

No one is optimistic 100% of the time...everyone has ups and downs.  Including me.  But I know that I function much better when I believe anything is possible and forge ahead.   If I didn't work on creating this energy for myself I would have given up a long time ago.  I sometimes feel like Sisyphus, pushing that big rock and watching it go down the mountain again and again.  But I go back to push it one more time in case this time it will get to the top of the mountain.  And it will!

It's in those moments of pause, when the rock is falling very quickly down the mountain while one is watching that one has a choice.  Do you give up and complain to all what your bad luck has brought, what others have done to you and how the rock is not collaborating as it should? Who else do you blame?  Or do you defy all odds,  stand up stronger, get back behind that rock and push, push, push...until you get it where it needs to be?

In Homer's myth, Sisyphus was punished by the Gods to push that huge stone for eternity.  As such, he played the role of the absurd hero again and again. In his essay on Sisyphus,  Camus states that he was happy in this quest and struggle to get the huge stone to the summit  (if you are interested in reading Camus' essay on Sisyphus, please go to the link at the end of this post.  I particularly like the last two paragraphs...).  We share no such fate of not reaching the summit.  It's up to each one of us to achieve what we want.  We can create our thoughts and direct them in a way that serve us.

It's not a great accomplishment, anyone can do that.  Creating good energy for oneself requires intense focus, commitment, and discipline.  Intense focus in always listening to our internal thoughts to understand what is it that we are projecting with our thoughts.  Discipline in being conscious on how the internal tape is playing out - is it the negative, fearful, tape or is it the encouraging, anything is possible, tape?  And commitment in switching from negative to positive thoughts as soon as we realize we are being self-destructive.

Some of us have grown up with great familiarity with the negative tape and it's hard to let it go.  Being a familiar narrative, there is a level of comfort in hearing it.  But it's important to know that one can edit it to one's advantage.

I spoke to my brother today.  He is moving tomorrow.  He told me tomorrow would be a horrible day for him because the movers are coming to pack his stuff, then taking it to his new house, etc. I said why can't it be a great day tomorrow, smooth and easy as opposed to how he's convinced himself it will be?  He laughed in a dismissive way - as if I was crazy! - and said something about you keep believing it's going to be great but I know it's going to be an extremely difficult day.

So I keep being mistaken for the fool in the family but it's okay as I'm anything but that.  If I can make anyone consider that thinking in a certain manner paves the way for more happiness then I'm a happy fool!


http://www.zafiris.net/articles/Sisyphus_Myth_Camus.htm