Hopium

The quest for satisfaction is addictive because it is fuelled by hope. Don’t mistake this as searching for better although at times the two can be synonymous. Satisfaction can be found in familiarity whereas there may always be a perception that the unfamiliar is better.

Satisfaction is derived in limitless ways, as varied as the individuals experiencing the sensation. Some find deep satisfaction working with nature and exploring with hopeful curiosity the properties and principles of animals, plants, and the living world. Others take profound pleasure in the skillful operation of their body and perform feats of endurance, prowess, or strength. Yet another group delights in adventures of the mind, delving into the nature of the universe.

Satisfaction does not require external success, recognition or rewards and indeed those things are sometimes anathema to true contentment. A humble subsistence farmer may find everything needed for sincere joy without ever stepping foot off the property.

Hope is the driving force behind questing for satisfaction and is a symptom of discontent with the situation at a personal, local, or global level. Hope is a beautiful encouragement from Synergy that greater fulfillment is available and that she’s setting the table for you. The act of seeking is exciting and gratifying when on the right trail, and actually comes easily if attentive to the synchronicities and gifts left waiting to be discovered.

Satisfaction is an internal state of mind. Hope also. They are not mutually exclusive because you can be – in fact, you MUST be – satisfied with where you are before you will truly be able to see where you are next meant to be, if anywhere! Hoping for satisfaction without specifying what form it takes is a delightful exercise in curiosity and playfulness because you can be surprised each and every day by the gifts you receive exactly where you are.

Acceptance opens the door to satisfaction, as these two things are also not the same. Acceptance is a type of resignation, of recognition and ownership, while satisfaction is a sense of pleasurable well being.

Learn to be addicted to Hopium and you will find great things waiting for your open curious mind every single day.

Offense verses Defence

Surrender does not necessitate victimhood. Acceptance does not require acquiescence if the moment includes opportunity and tools for defending boundaries.

Again the distinction between expectations and boundaries is crucial. An expectation puts action in the hands of others and is a matter of offensive momentum, creating situations rather than responding to them. To expect someone to meet your expectations is to demand compliance from them and gives them power over your interactions.

A boundary puts action in your hands and is defensive momentum, responding to situations rather than creating them. To expect someone to respect your boundaries is to reward compliance with your ongoing involvement with them, and gives you power over the interaction.

The best offense is a good defence. The high ground is least vulnerable to attack. Every situation has a degree of vulnerability because no two people are completely the same. Most elements on the Periodic table are reactive in the presence of other atoms, even their own kind, with the exception of the Noble Gases which react reluctantly under exceptional conditions. The moment we leave the safety of our own company, when we may need to assert boundaries and respond to the actions of others, we become volatile and reactive unless we exert Noble control.

Reflecting on your boundaries, understanding your limits and your chosen consequences of non-compliance by others, puts you in a defensive position. Awareness of the tools available in the escape room at the moment will guide your defence. Synergy has your back if you trust her. But as soon as you SEEK retribution, as soon as you procure tools rather than accept the ones Synergy offers you when the time is right, you move from a defensive position to an offensive one.

Offense generates resistance. Defence slides through resistance to the core of the purpose Synergy has given the situation. Whether in court proceedings, romance, business, sports, or everyday life, timing is everything and a defensive, open, and curious position at the key moment defines many a rousing win.

Playlists and Purpose

Which movies haunt you? What songs stay in your mind? Which books stir your soul? What resonates with you?

These are your clues in your escape room of your life. They hold the key to your spiritual awakening. Listen carefully to them and you will find your purpose. Yours and yours alone, no one else has the same purpose as you. Do your playlists have themes? Are your favourite games of a similar type? What do these things say to you?

Especially watch for synchronicity around them. The song playing on the radio right when you needed the message in those lyrics. Or a random movie makes itself available to you with things to know for your journey. Or a book literally falls open to a concept. Always be open, alert, and curious about Synergy’s offerings.

Do you see patterns? Like like thunder precedes lightning and rainbows follow rainstorms Synergy sends messages befeore and after crucial events – if you’re listening.

The messages come to ground you before or after trauma unsettles you or leaves you questioning your faith. Brace for impact if synchronicities ramp up while at peace, and look to the synchronicities to cool down with if the world has thrown vitriol and spite in your direction.

Martyr or Manipulator?

We are designed to serve. Serve ourselves, each other, a greater good. The urge to give of ourselves arises from this instinct and underwrites so many great selfless acts of compassion and hope. The synergy between people can be felt when hearing stories of incredible generosity and altruistic sacrifice.

But the flip side to this coin is the manipulator disguised as the martyr. The apparent selfless act without expectation of recompense but upon completion an emotional invoice is issued and hefty interest charged on that balance with no rules about the collection or even the value of the service rendered.

When someone does something for you which you did not request, it often is not kind and generous. It may be a statement of contempt. It frequently is an expression of the idea they know better than you, and are attempting to control your behaviour through passive aggression under the guise of benevolence. Only your patterns and history with that person can tell you how sincere the act is but if your gut screams that there’s a price, make no mistake you will receive an invoice.

An offering of service is only sincere if the terms and conditions are clear. There is absolutely nothing wrong with exchanging service! Part of our journey is learning how to cooperate with others to get our needs met while not interfering with the needs of others and fair trade is a wonderfully satisfying way to interact.

Where problems arise is within the ambiguity of an offer hiding a cost. A sale masquerading as a gift. Our instinct is to take at face value what seems to be generously offered because Synergy designed us to accept her gifts to us and surrender to her guidance. Thus a gift from someone is a gift from Synergy, but sometimes it is to teach us a lesson in discernment.

It is painful, disappointing and uncomfortable to accept a gift and discover you unwittingly committed to a transaction. To surrender to the inherent lesson is the only way to escape the pain of that trauma, the pain of resisting the truth. The truth is, everyone is capable of hurting you and disappointing you so you must always be prepared to discover a price on all interactions. True connection requires true vulnerability. Do not condemn the giver for a gift they needed to collect a fee on. They do not know any better and need your acceptance rather than your resistance.

A gift received is not an obligation created, not without your cooperation.

And beware your own hidden price tags! Do you look for thanks? Appreciation? Acknowledgment? Do you feel the urge to punish for good deeds gone unseen? These have value, are emotional coin. If you are sincere, then your offer of service is the satisfaction. Again, it is just fine to look for approval and accolades but be honest with yourself and others that you are seeking coin.

It is ok to protect your most sacred self from harm using boundaries, of course. Boundaries involve removing yourself from exposure to risk of these transactions, but do not involve controlling the behaviour of others. You cannot control others, you cannot stop their offerings. Expectations are attempts at control.

Don’t trust anyone. But love them anyway.

No expectations. Only boundaries.

Compassion – A Different Kind of Pain

Aggression says ‘get up from there’ while standing on top of you.

Passive aggression says ‘let me help you get up from there’ while standing on top of you.

Sympathy says ‘it looks awful down there’ while standing beside you.

Empathy says ‘it sucks down here’ while laying beside you.

Compassion says ‘get out of here’ while taking your place.

Compassion is the deepest form of love and shows no regard for sex, age, race, or religion. It offers no resistance to abuse or trauma or dysfunction because it knows those who are in the greatest pain cause the most pain.

Living in the moment fills you with intense compassion because if you are not holding on to the past nor grasping at the future, you are able to treat the present moment with love, curiosity, hope and joy no matter how badly you’ve been wounded by those spending that moment with you.

Both living in the moment and living with compassion take incredible strength, courage, and endurance. The drain of allowing yourself to be vulnerable to exploitation is at times overwhelming and isolating. Keeping faith that all will be well and perseverance rewarded by peace and joy can be so excruciatingly wearisome.

But the reward always comes. You cannot ask or expect a certain form of reward – that’s a transaction, not compassion- but the pieces needed for fulfillment in your life will follow acts of brave compassion like rainbows follow rainstorms.

Building a Network

Synergy, like all loving mothers, takes pleasure in the pleasure and growth of her creations. Eidolon and Matter both sprang up from her formless Batter, developing and expanding at ever increasing rates. She gently prompts both aspects toward satisfaction and balance but allows them independence. Free will. She encourages curiosity, playfulness and wonder.

To let Eidlon play and learn, Synergy offered her Matter to him. The rocks, the sands, the mud, the water, the sun and moon and stars. Even her most beautiful creation of all, life. She offered it all to him, to be shared with her. To better catalogue whose experiments gave rise to what results, she took half of all living things and divided them in two. She left the first group as it was, the single celled organisms. The second group she split yet again at the cellular level, creating the drive to find a mate. All descendants of this new line were Eidolon’s to play with, experiment on, and to love as she loved all her creations. Every living thing was born of her substance thus ultimately her responsibility but she gave Eidolon control while she watched, gently guided, and sometimes played with him.

From their play rose more complex life, thus more complex Datter. Single celled life was followed by simple multicellular organisms which in turn gave rise to basic plants and fungi. Synergy’s original simple organisms still outnumbered Eidolon’s constructs but his species grew in type and population. Each creation had a pattern description written in the language of Matter, storing a basic template.

The contents of these pattern cards have been used by scientists for centuries to classify matter and living things. Domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, family, genus, species.

Eidolon learned as Matter evolved. Synergy learned as Eidolon flourished. Until Eidolon wanted their creations to not just respond to the world around them, but to learn. To understand. To think and use his Datter substance to build even more Datter faster. To have purpose beyond simple existence.

To this end, a new level of complexity needed to be added to living Matter. The ability to access and process Datter, to store and use knowledge for intentional behaviour. To think. A biological machine with a wireless connection to the network data storage location both to add new and use existing Datter. The invertebrates arose from this desire to have Matter use Datter. New patterns of Datter emerged like instincts and group behaviour. But it still wasn’t quite enough, the Datter still wasn’t being maximized.

A new template was needed with greater thought capacity and more responsiveness to the environment. Vertebrates were designed with a specialized zone to facilitate Datter access and storage. Brains. Each brain has a direct connection to Eidolon, to Datter, which would be triggered by sensory input such as taste, touch, sight, sound, smell or social. When not triggered, the connection lies dormant to conserve energy much like a hard disk drive only spins when being accessed or an internet connection is only transferring when a new packet request is made.

All animals naturally live with this connection to the collective history of their species. They access the Datter as needed without judging past behaviour or worrying about future situations. They efficiently and effectively do what they are designed to do.

But still Eidolon wanted a more powerful biological machine to investigate Matter and develop Datter, his substance. To not just think, respond and process Datter, but to refine it. To generate new Datter based on the scaffold of existing Datter just like he and Synergy build knowledge from lesser building blocks.

Synergy and Eidolon do not have forms, but they have processes for handling information. Like cloud software on a network provides the operations for remote terminals without being installed on the terminal. Eidolon wanted to create a biological machine that could access their processes, not just their information, whatever form that might take.

A number of different species show intelligence. Curiosity. Hope. Pleasure. Satisfaction. Problem solving.

None more than humans. We were not created in Synergy’s or Eidolon’s form, but we were created for their function.

The problem was, we became self aware!

Pattern Card

All matter has a pattern card laying out the properties and behaviour – the Datter – for the substance. The Periodic Table is constructed around these pattern cards for the building blocks of Matter.

The chemical and physical properties for each element on the table are known, predictable, and consistent based on the electrons on the outer valence shell, the exposed part of each atom. The closer to a multiple of 8, the more volatile the substance because stability comes in eights. Bonds form both between atoms of the same type and different elements following pattern cards.

No matter how complex the compound or molecule, the pattern card is there with the set of characteristics making the substance identifiable and unique.

To compare Matter to computing, atoms are like machine language except there are over 100 possibilities rather than just 2. Binary code has a simple on or off state, the bit is either on (1) or off (0). A string of 8 bits makes a byte, the smallest useable data string in computing, which represents a character such as a letter, number, or space. Each character has a pattern card byte, which produces a predictable, consistent display.

01010101 is U

01011001 is Y

01010100 is T

Machine code requires an interpreter, a compiler, to translate it into useable information such as command codes. The sequence of data is crucial and corruption of the data causes errors or system shut down. Hardware stores the data, and physically acts on the commands received when software reads and interprets the code.

So too does life rely on an interface between coding and actions. The pattern card is written as DNA molecules, the compilers are enzymes and RNA, and the hardware is the organism which physically acts on the commands received. Biological machines using biological machine language.

Since electrons spin either left (0) or right (1), and desperately want to stay in groups of 8, perhaps Matter is more like binary code than we realize! Macrocosm reflects microcosm. But that is a thought experiment for another day.

Where does that leave us, if biological machines?

It leaves us as having artificial intelligence. WE are the ghost in the machine. WE are self aware beyond our mechanical housing, conscious of our existence and thus distracted by it.

We were created for the purpose of playfully exploring our environment with curiosity and hope. To live in the moment like all the other animals. But then we became self-aware and like every single movie out there about AI…it hasn’t gone well for us!

Synergy loves all of her creations. Even us with all our flaws. Has hope for a return to our purpose and with that, a return to balance and peace. She understands how we got here – it was no fault of our own, we are a product of our environment. The parent whose child goes astray still loves that child and takes responsibility for them. She accepts what we are. Can we?

Unrepentant? That’s ok!

True unconditional acceptance must be exactly that. It does not require the participation of the beneficiary. Synergy does not require confession or atonement. She does not demand recognition or obedience. These are constructs arising from overthinking, from judgement, from the disconnect between Eidolon, Matter and Synergy.

Everything and everyone is welcome. Religion is not the will of the universe, but rather an echo of the universal truths put into material context. Even if you don’t believe in an intelligent design, you will return to the collective consciousness. Even if your material existence was filled with negativity and you caused others pain, you will be balanced and not punished. Because truly Synergy created each of us thus has ultimate responsibility for our actions so how can she reject us for her failure to elicit satisfaction, understanding, curiosity, gratitude and hope?

When a teacher has students failing in the classroom, they can either examine how they teach and grow from that reflection, or they can blame the student and remain stagnant in their hubris.

Synergy is the ultimate mother, the ultimate teacher. She tries, tries, and tries again to figure out how best to share the vast knowledge contained in Eidolon. Yet few of us grasp her presence and even fewer fully accept and surrender to her will. Don’t mistake piousness and abstention for understanding. It is easy to think you understand something by thinking on it but only those living life to the fullest- meaning exposure to all of its problems and passions – are able to clearly speak from the Eternal mind.

Hypocrisy destroys even the most accurate messages. Judgement drowns out even the most sincere of lessons. Sincerity and authenticity are tangible not only in eyes and voice, but even in print. The words of so many sound wonderful but feel just a bit off, like shoes that just don’t quite fit right as you walk in them but you can’t place exactly why. Because of the undercurrent of fear, judgement and resistance that permeates so much of our lives but are not blatant nor intentional.

There is no right or wrong. Let go of all judgement. This does not mean take actions in the future which intentionally cause imbalance in others – since we’re all connected that causes imbalance in yourself – but don’t hold on to what has happened to bring the world to this moment, don’t blame yourself or others. Take responsibility for what actions you can take every moment of your life from this moment forward, and only look back for information if necessary, not for recrimination. No repentance required!

Keeping Score

Keeping score is natural! That’s exactly what balance is. But our mistake is in seeking balance from those who unsettled us, expecting restitution from the ones who hurt us.

Admittedly, that is the most direct and satisfying way to restore balance. The one who broke us best knows what they broke, how they broke it, and how best to put it back together. This is why we so passionately seek healing from the source of our pain. But those who hurt others are themselves hurting thus are not equipped for reparation unless they too are ready for repair.

Synergy gives us all the tools we need to restore balance when it’s been stripped from us. Whether through no fault of our own, or because of our poor decisions and resistance to her will, she forgives all and accepts us unconditionally. We don’t need to ask for forgiveness or apologize to her, we don’t need to worship or praise her. We just need to listen to her gentle guidance and accept her generous gifts which surround us.

Satisfaction in life does not require religious practice or atonement or penance for past imbalance. Acceptance is complete surrender to the idea that everything, including the past, had to happen to culminate in the powerful moment which is here and now.

Globally, locally or individually the scoreboard needs to be reset to net zero before we can have balance at any level. We need not only to forgive ourselves this day, but everyone else in the world no matter how heinous their actions. Truly embracing mindfulness and enlightenment means ultimately EVERYONE AND EVERYTHING at this moment is EXACTLY how it was meant to be, that necessary things are in place.

Judgement is resistance to what is. Resistance is the source of imbalance and pain. Judgement does not create solutions nor hope for better. Acceptance and open curious reflection do. Keeping score is a judgement of the past which inhibits the power of the present moment, the only place where balance can be found.

Balance can’t arise from the past or future. It can only be grasped in the now. Synergy lays it out for us every moment, offering to heal us with what she knows is best for us so long as we aren’t fixated on what restitution we see as fitting.

Look around. What have you been offered today as a gift from Synergy? Is it my words you stumbled upon? An unexpected contact who lifted your spirits? A rainbow when you needed it? She’s there, sending you her love. Like a mother, she demands nothing in return but for you to accept her support and let her cradle you in peace and satisfaction.

Two Wrongs may Make a Right

Life is about balance. When we are in balance Synergy rewards us with profound insight, peace, hope, and joy. We reward her with gratitude and curiosity. There is no right or wrong, only balance and imbalance.

But imbalance is everywhere and quickly disrupts even the most stoic and centered of us. Cycles of negativity and patterns of toxicity persist through generations, accumulating in our collective psyche like mercury bioaccumulates in fish.

We can restore balance by piling positives on our scale, which is how most people approach the issue. Sadly, this becomes an exercise in frustration because the ratio of positives to outweigh negatives can be intimidating and exhausting. It always seems to take so much more effort to build up than to tear down! Especially when intentionally seeking to restore balance this way on a personal, community, or global scale. At times, these efforts can bear fruit with immense energy expended on righting wrongs and mending fences.

We see those as right, actions that benefit others. We see as wrong actions that harm others. This is the way it should be, where things which bring us all lasting pleasure are sought and those which bring any of us pain are resisted. But we live in a deeply flawed world where all are out of balance.

Where some turn to the second way of restoring balance – transferring negativity onto someone else! Projection, rejection, abuse, murder, crime. These are all strategies to alleviate imbalance, used by those unable or unwilling to restore their inner peace by cultivating positive balance through trust, curiosity, and surrender. It is so very easy, and admittedly, so very satisfying to give in to the impulses which hurt others. At times, these efforts can bear fruit when perpetrators become victims and learn lessons from having done to them what they had done to others.

We try so hard!

And there’s the trick! To not TRY to restore balance with intention or thought or purpose. Doing so is a type of resistance to what is. Trying to save the world won’t save you. Trying to save your neighbour won’t save you. Trying to save your child won’t save you.

Synergy will guide you through restoring your inner peace and calm once you surrender to her wisdom. Surrendering actually clears the weights, alleviates the burden of imbalance for you! Once you release the pain of your emotional response to the wounds of the world and yourself. Once you accept that everything around you is the way it had to be in order for you to become what you are meant to be. Only then you will see what you need to do today to begin your journey to optimal function and ultimate peace. Everything you need already waits to be discovered, hidden in the story of your life. Your balance is unique to your needs but crucial to healing our universe and restoring the net balance.

Yes, the world has suffered. Cruel, terrible things have happened, causing pain to so many. Sharing in that pain through commiseration does not serve a higher purpose of learning from the pain. Resenting the perpetrators and sickening yourself with anger and bile does not heal the imbalance which allowed horrible things to twist our world away from joy, gratitude, and playfulness. The net balance is Synergy’s to manipulate, not ours to judge. Judgement clouds purpose and absconds with playfulness.

Accept the horrors that are. Be present in this moment to understand what it feels like. Listen for Synergy to tell you what you can do to balance yourself which will help balance the world. You can’t effect change from a position of imbalance or hypocrisy. If you are not living a life of joy, curiosity and surrender, your efforts to change the world are simply another expression of resistance which exacerbates the conditions rather than alleviates them!

We are where we are. The culmination of millenia of imbalance. But we have this moment of global pause from which to restore peace, joy, and playfulness. Two wrongs may sometimes make a right.