Apprenticeships and Internships

"Where your talents and the world's needs cross,
there lies your vocation."
- Aristotle

Here is an interesting thought...

We spend much of our pre school-years, and even our pre job-years,
as Apprentices and Interns. These are the years we spend doing
for free the things we truly love.

When we do the things we love, we are acting in Harmony with
our Divine Nature. And although we may refer to these activities
as hobbies or interests they are, in fact, activities which resonate
with our True Nature.

If our interest is to be an athlete, we will spend these formative
years learning, practicing, and perfecting the particular aspects
and nuances of whatever sport we have a deep interest in.

If our interest is to be a botanist, we will spend a great portion
of our time learning to name and recognize different trees and
plants. We will even venture into the woods and collect different
leaves and preserve them inside pages of a scrapbook.

If our interest is chemistry, we will engulf ourselves in chemistry
sets and experiments.

If we reflect back, most of us will probably remember our childhood
interests and hobbies which were a driving part of our life in our
magical and mystical pre school, and pre job, years.

And though we may think that we were merely "playing" when we
immersed ourselves in these activities, we were in fact playing at
Learning what truly interests us.  And if we give these activities
careful Thought, we will find that these initial hobbies and interests
were our first Apprenticeships and Internships. And, these early
Apprenticeships and Internships were nothing less than our
voluntary self-education and Self-Initiation in a hobby or field that
is very dear to us.

We pursued these early interests enthusiastically, lovingly, and
for free! We were learning without even thinking about it. And,
we became very good at these interests simply because we
loved what we were doing.

Many individuals carry these early Apprenticeships with them for
their entire lives and build their careers upon them. These
individuals stick to their dreams and labor many years in their
self-chosen Apprenticeships until their skills are properly honed.
Then, after years of Sacrifice in which the necessary talents and
skills have been properly refined and mastered , these talented
individuals emerge as the superstars, geniuses, and Trailblazers
in the particular field of their childhood Choice.

Yet there is another beautiful and mystical Gift which is lavished
upon everyone who pursues their childhood Apprenticeships...
even if they do not become superstars or Trailblazers.

These individuals experience an Incarnation full of the same
magic and enchantment that consumed them during their
childhood years. To look at it in another way, these individuals
never forfeit either their childhood, their dreams, or their
enthusiasms.

So, for those of us who pursued our childhood Apprenticeships
and Internships, let us recall how we laughed with enthusiasm
and excitement each and every time we learned something new
and interesting in those activities and fields which are very dear
to us. And, above all, let us forever Remember those magical
and mystical days when we enthusiastically did for free the
things we are getting paid to do today!

Comments and Emails: I welcome comments and emails from
people with similar thoughts and feelings. My email address is
located in the upper-left area of this page. Comments can be
posted by using the "Comment" link located below each article.
Also: If you found value in this article please feel free to forward
it to other like-minded individuals, organizations and sites.

Disclaimer: None of my articles should be considered to be
either advice or expertise. They are simply personal opinions
and no more. Everyone is encouraged to seek competent
advice from a licensed, registered, or certified professional
should such advice or service be required.

© copyright Joseph Panek 2011

The Theater Of Life

"All the world's a stage,
and all the men and women merely players..."
- William Shakespeare

The world is one huge Theater. Within this Theater there are a
limitless number of Stages. Upon these Stages exist a vast
multitude of Actors involved in an infinite number of Plays.

We see these Actors performing on their personally chosen
Stages each and every day.

The student's stage is a classroom. The doctors stage is a
hospital. The authors stage is a place of quiet solitude. The
criminal's stage is a prison. A judge's stage is the courtroom.

So it goes, on and on, all these actors involved in all these plays
on all these stages.  And on one of these Stages, in one of these
Plays, each one of us is acting out our own individual part.

Are we happy with the Stage we are on, the Role we are playing,
and the Script we are reciting? Some people are, but many people
are not!

When we view our lives from this point-of-view we get an entirely
different outlook on the jobs, professions, and activities in which
we involve ourselves.

How many of us have Become very good at an occupation that we
are dissatisfied with? How many of us are involved in activities that
have been chosen for us by someone else?  How many of us are
acting out Roles that are not in Harmony with Our Divine Nature?

We are all Professional Actors who are very capable of Award
Winning performances in a Role, and on a Stage, that is
Harmonious with our True Nature. If we don't like the particular
Role we are currently involved in we can simply Choose to move
to another Play on another Stage and assume a Role which
provides us with the comfort, contentment, and Adventure we feel
that we deserve.

There are numerous Stages and uncountable Roles from which
we can Choose. The fact that we have plenty of past experience
performing a certain Role we are unhappy with does not Obligate
us to continue on with that Role. We can Change Stages, Roles,
and Scripts any Time we Choose.

Our Incarnation is a Gift that is meant to be experienced and
enjoyed.  The best way for us to enjoy our Gift is to Choose only
those experiences which are Harmonious with Our Divine Nature.
This is one of the Lessons handed down to us through the art
and practice of Alchemy.

If this is selfish, then let us exercise our Divine Right to be Selfish.
Selfishness is far superior to misery; for we become unhappy,
frustrated, and unfulfilled when we participate in any experience
that is not Harmonious with our True Self.

We owe it to ourselves to be the best person we can be and to
experience the best life (Incarnation) possible.

We were granted our current Incarnation in order to evolve,
Become, experience, and enjoy our life in the most positive and
expansive way Imaginable.  If we are unhappy and unfulfilled with
how our current Incarnation is progressing, we have the Sovereign
right to turn in our script, take off our costume, exit the Stage, and
Become the most enthusiastic and Sincere Actor playing our favorite
Role upon the Stage-of-our-Choosing in this great Theater of Life.

Comments and Emails: I welcome comments and emails from
people with similar thoughts and feelings. My email address is
located in the upper-left area of this page. Comments can be
posted by using the "Comment" link located below each article.
Also: If you found value in this article please feel free to forward
it to other like-minded individuals, organizations and sites.

Disclaimer: None of my articles should be considered to be
either advice or expertise. They are simply personal opinions
and no more. Everyone is encouraged to seek competent
advice from a licensed, registered, or certified professional
should such advice or service be required.

© copyright Joseph Panek 2011

Guilt, Threats, and Obligations

"A person cannot be free who submits themself
to the shackles of others."
- Joseph Panek

Here are two questions which deserve our deepest and most
sincere consideration

First Question: How many things have we done in our lives, and
are possibly still doing, that we really do not want to do?

Second Question: How many things have we NOT done, and have
not experienced, in our lives that we deeply regret not having done
and experienced?

For many of us the list of answers to these two questions is
probably very painful and quite long.

Whenever we do something that we do not want to do, or not do
something that we desire to do, we are behaving in a way that is
not in Harmony with our Divine Nature.

When we behave in any way that is not in Harmony with our Divine
Nature we automatically bring people, places, things, moods, and
energies into our lives that weigh heavily upon our peace-of-mind,
drag us from our personal Path, prevent us from experiencing our
personal Destiny, and cause us to relinquish our individual
Sovereignty and Free Will.

In short, whenever we do things we do not want to do, or do not
do the things we truly want to do, we are bringing negative energy
into our lives.

At first, these Actions simply subdue us. However, over the long
term, these behaviors become our entrapments. And these
entrapments eventually end up destroying the Divine Gifts we
were bestowed with when we entered our Current Incarnation:
individual Sovereignty, childlike curiosity, intoxicating enthusiasm,
wondrous enchantment, and limitless imagination.

When we consider all of these things, we are naturally drawn to
a Third Question:

Why is it that we tend to blindly do the things we do not want to
do, yet at the same time staunchly avoid doing those things we
deeply and truly desire to do?

To answer this question we need to evaluate the following three
culprits: Guilt, Threats, and Obligations.

Guilt, Threats, and Obligations are the three poison pills that society
feeds to the Conformist, the Ignorant, and the unsuspecting. These
mind-altering poison pills change us from actually being happy to
simply acting happy. They alter our minds to cheerfully embrace
the many insurmountable responsibilities, and externally-imposed
expectations, that choke off our spontaneity, enthusiasm, dreams,
imagination, and joy for life.

And although the natures of Guilt, Threats, and Obligations can
overlap and become indistinguishable from each other in many
instances, and even lead to the same Consequences, let us try
to examine each one of these powerful tricksters separately.

Guilt: The use of Guilt can be subtle, deceptive, and deadly. It is
the eternally favorite poison pill of all self-serving persons, factions,
and organizations whose sole purpose is to impose themselves
upon, and thereby dominate, others.

Through the wielding of Guilt we are bludgeoned into actually
Believing that everyone else but us deserves, needs, and requires
something; that it is our "personal responsibility" to simply give, or
Sacrifice, for the sake of some "poor and unfortunate" other.

We see Guilt imposed upon us daily by political factions, religious
groups, and the uncountable number of self-interested "charitable"
organizations who unrelentingly feed us large morsels of Guilt in
order to sustain, finance, and promote their self-serving interests.

In addition, Guilt is also imposed upon us by self-serving persons
who continually attempt to intimidate us with comments such as:
"You only think of yourself."
"You're just selfish. Why do you refuse to share your (fill in the
blanks) with others?"
"I promised everyone you would be there." (Really! who are you to
speak for me?)
"If you move away from home, you will be stabbing me in the heart
with a dagger." (How many of us have squandered years of our
lives because of this Guilt-trip?)

Threats: We may think of Threats as only being physical and
violent in nature. However the most subtle and powerful Threats are
the ones we succumb to under the guise of jealousy, envy, and
ultimatums. Some examples are:
"If you won't do this for me, I'll find someone else who will."
"You must act immediately. Otherwise someone else will snatch
this opportunity."
And, perhaps the most famous: "Limited time offer."

Obligations: Obligations, impositions, and the expectations of
others all fall into this one category. These are the Paths we allow
ourselves to be coerced into following which are not in Harmony
with our True Self (our Divine Nature). Again, some examples:
"You come from a family of lawyers. You owe it to your family to
go to law school." (But I want to be an artist!)
"Its time for you to grow up; get married, have a family, buy a house
(go into debt), and give me grandchildren."
And the ever-eternal: "Everybody else is doing it."

Sovereign, Free, and Expansive minds do not allow Guilt, Threats,
or externally-imposed Obligations violate their Incarnations.

These Lone Wolfs and Non-Conformists understand that Guilt,
Threats, and Obligations are Self-Limiting and make people very
old at a very young age.They also realize that by bringing these
foreign, negative, and dis-Harmonious energies into our lives we
Become saturated with mountains of responsibilities, expectations,
and impositions which society is all-too-happy to heap upon the
unwary and unsuspecting. Mountains which must be either slowly
chiseled away or submitted to with a broken spirit.

Whenever a person or faction assaults us with Guilt or Threats,
or when they attempt to force upon us their Deceptive and self-
serving demand that it is "our personal obligation" to do what
they insist of us, let us be quick to recognize these poison pills
for that they truly are: externally-imposed entrapments designed
to strip us of our individual Sovereignty and enslave us to the
self-serving and fickle whims of those whose sole intention is to
dominate us.

Once we realize that Guilt, Threats, and Obligations are simply the
ogres, trolls, Demons, and dark forces which occasionally disturb
our Journey, we can then either bypass them or slay them and
continue our Sovereign trek down that unique Path which leads us
to our  Personal Destiny.

So the next time someone attempts to hand us the poison pills of
either Guilt, Threats, or externally-imposed Obligations let us keep
one fact in mind. In the long "waiting line" of humanity there is
always someone willing to relinquish their Sovereignty,and
embrace Self-Imposed Limitations for the "privilege" of allowing
Guilt, Threats, and Obligations to become a part of their life.
There is no reason why that someone should be us.

Peace, Contentment, and Freedom are achieved by us when we
are in Harmony with our Divine Nature. And one of the simplest
ways we can accomplish this is by doing only those things we
truly want to do and by avoiding doing all those things we really
do not want to do.

Comments and Emails: I welcome comments and emails from
people with similar thoughts and feelings. My email address is
located in the upper-left area of this page. Comments can be
posted by using the "Comment" link located below each article.
Also: If you found value in this article please feel free to forward
it to other like-minded individuals, organizations and sites.

Disclaimer: None of my articles should be considered to be
either advice or expertise. They are simply personal opinions
and no more. Everyone is encouraged to seek competent
advice from a licensed, registered, or certified professional
should such advice or service be required.

© copyright Joseph Panek 2011

Our Subconscious

Although an idea may originate in the mind, it is in the Subconscious
that this idea is brought into Fulfillment.

An idea, or Thought, belongs to the Mental Realm and is therefore
"limited" to whatever the mind is currently able to understand.
The Subconscious, however, is the Spiritual Realm which is
"unlimited" in its power to both Understand and Create.

The idea that originates in the mind is a Seed. This Seed, like all
other seeds, needs fertile ground in which to grow, blossom and
Manifest. The Fertile Ground in which the Seed of an Idea
manifests itself is the Subconscious.

Our Subconscious is our Spiritual Womb. And just like any other
"womb" it is a fertile environment that protects and nurtures
whatever Seed is placed in it in order for it to grow, blossom and
Manifest.

But how does this all happen?

Our Subconscious is part of our Divine Nature. It is also the
Spiritual part of us that is directly connected to the Eternal
Consciousness where all acts of Creation take place. In other
words, our Subconscious is a Direct link to the Eternal
Consciousness where everything that ever will be already exists
in its unmanifested form.

We can liken our Subconscious to our Atman (our "God Within")
that is permanently and directly linked to Brahman (the Eternal
Consciousness).

We can look at this mental-Spiritual Relationship which exists
within us in the following manner:

Our Mind plants a Thought or idea (A Seed) into our Subconscious.
our Subconsciousness (which is one with the Eternal Consciousness)
takes over from there.

It harbors and nurtures (Marinates) our idea for the "appropriate"
length of Time. Once this nurturing process is complete our
Spiritual Subconscious tells our Mental Mind how to bring our idea
to Fulfillment.

These are the times when we get an answer to a question, or
discover a "new way of looking at something", while we are involved
in an entirely unrelated task.

These are the Times that the "light bulb" goes on in our mind and
we say, "Wow, that answer came out of nowhere". The Truth is, no,
it didn't come out of "nowhere"; it came from our Subconscious
...Our Spiritual Womb.

Comments and Emails: I welcome comments and emails from
people with similar thoughts and feelings. My email address is
located in the upper-left area of this page. Comments can be
posted by using the "Comment" link located below each article.
Also: If you found value in this article please feel free to forward
it to other like-minded individuals, organizations and sites.

Disclaimer: None of my articles should be considered to be
either advice or expertise. They are simply personal opinions
and no more. Everyone is encouraged to seek competent
advice from a licensed, registered, or certified professional
should such advice or service be required.

© copyright Joseph Panek 2009