The tyranny of the ‘now’
Apr 10th, 2008 by spaceagesage
My aunt sent me several books on using the Enneagram — an ancient insight that breaks down personalities into nine different types. I have found the subject a fascinating journey toward becoming whole.
One of the books, Discover Your Soul Potential by Kathy Hurley and Theodorre Donson, talks about my personality type being “suspended in the ‘now’ and therefore … tyrannized by the immediate. You don’t need faith or trust or even courage to deal with the immediate.”
I found those sentences quite revealing for myself and my personality, but I also wonder if those words don’t sum up one reason many of us busy ourselves as we drive ourselves in our daily tasks. I rarely come across people these days who do not reply using the word “busy” when asked about how things are going on in their lives right now.
Sometimes in my past, all that doing seemed to act as the be all, end all of my life. It is as if I used my constant activity to define myself, as if busyness is a worthy character trait. But as the book adds, there is an anxiety underneath all the busyness that steals rest and restfulness. I mean, how many people do you know who can say, “You know, I just feel so rested these days.”
For my personality type, the book suggests “be still, contemplate, and focus …” Yes, easier said than done, but it is all just part of a journey to being able to say, “I just feel so rested these days that my health is wonderful and my creative energy seems to flow like a river.”
Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop to look around
once in a while you could miss it.
~ From the movie Ferris Bueller’s Day Off ~