We come into this world full of wonder, amazement and an audaciously authentic ability to laugh out loud at whatever tickles our funny bone. To our young minds - free of attached meanings, assumptions and suppositions - the world is a delightfully cacophony of silliness. Just looking at Mom or Dad evokes a sense of pure joy and well being.
It seems we spend the rest of our lives trying to get back to that place of euphoria. Like a crack addict we consume one drug of choice after another in a misguided attempt to sustain an inner high. For the moment, let's put aside the various incarnations of illegal drugs sold in the dark seedy back-alleys or lined across the tables at errant fast-lane jet set parties. You don't have to be a rocket scientist to know that continued use of such narcotics would land you either in jail or in the morgue.
As a society, we know all too well the fated downward spiral of an alcoholic. Whether it is within the family or splattered across the tabloid headlines we get the crash and burn pitfalls of an alcohol-fueled life. We turn a blind eye to culturally acceptable "feel good" drugs of choice including:
Compulsive Shopping (or Collecting) Hoarding Excessive Cosmetic Surgery Over Eating, Anorexia or Bulimia Stress Whining & Complaining Verbal or Physical Abuse - of others and self
These 'drugs' are consumed for a fleeting state of euphoria. Like a narcotic, the effect wears off and the addict goes after the next hit. "If I just buy this one last Prada bag, nip /tuck, box of cookies THEN I'll be who I want to be and good enough. If I beat up on everyone and everything around me then I'll feel better about myself. If I create more stress I'll feel vital. Yes, you can become addicted to the adrenalin by the brain under stress. Know any Drama Queens or Micro-Manager Control Freaks?
If I make someone else wrong, I'll be right and better than them. If I hit someone I can control them and have control over my life. If I beat up on myself I will Find Excuses And Reasons (F.E.A.R.) not to rise above. It will be ok to stay right where I am where it is comfortable.
All this mind mishegas stirred up in an effort to get back to the ecstatic state we experienced as an infant.
Noted psychologist Abraham Maslow defined this feeling of euphoric harmonious interconnectedness as a peak experience. It is experiencing the joy, excitement, well-being, wonder and awe we knew at day one. We were bundles of love overwhelmed by the beauty, possibility and delight that was our world.
Here's the thing..
We don't need to commit a crime or go down what is certain to be a path of self-destruction in order to live in the ebb and flow of peak experience. Nothing outside of us is required to achieve a transpersonal state of awareness that makes us feel good down to our French manicured toes. What we had as babies is still there. All we have to do is reach deep within, reconnect with who we really are, boldly express this truth, and have the moxie to go after what will make our heart sing - no matter what anyone else says or thinks about it. That's what I call Moxie.
I won't kid you. It's not an easy reach. It takes a willingness to go places that are uncomfortable. It takes the guts to be vulnerable. It requires a firm commitment to yourself centered in the truth of who you are. It is taking a stand up against those who wish to cross your personal boundaries, what you value. It takes effectively communicated cajones.
Take the high road in the path of a legal high. You did it as a baby. You can do it now. Like learning how to walk again, the first step begins with you. It's ok if you fall. Pick up the gifts in the lessons learned while you're on the ground. Your next steps will be bigger and stronger. Soon you'll be off and running with wild abandon in a self-generated state of bliss.