A Reluctant Awakening

From a distance I can hear my father's deliberate footsteps on the old floorboards getting closer. Soon I'll hear, "Time to get up, Fella." It's time to get up to milk, feed and muck the cows. It's not even light out. Even today I still have a dislike for cows. I don't want to wake up!

If I wake up I'll have to do something. I'll have to change. I'm comfortable in my bed.

This reminds me of a story about potty training an almost three year old. It was suggested to the young mother by the grandmother that maybe the child is too comfortable in her "snuggies." Perhaps by replacing the "snuggies" with regular pants, she would be uncomfortable enough after relief to want to make some changes, such as knowing and announcing when it's time to use the bathroom. There's something about when the consequences are too painful, uncomfortable, only then will we make some kind of change. Incidentally, the wisdom of the elder worked.

I found this article, "Cracking Any Coconut the Easy Way." Because waking up is difficult and, thus, resisted, I think this article applies, at least to me. My head is like a coconut.

"Some people try to get into a coconut by banging on it with a hammer. Others suggest poking holes in the eyes to drain the liquid before hammering. This sounds like a good idea, but if you have tried it before, you may have discovered it isn't quite so easy. The eyes are small and the surrounding shell quite thick and hard. After much effort to jam them with a sharp object or puncture it with a nail, you may end up with a slow trickle, taking a lot longer to drain all the liquid out than you may have patience for.

"A quick and easy, no-nonsense way to crack a coconut is to use a cleaver. Holding it with one hand such that the midriff rests in the middle of your palm, with the tip on one hand and the eyes on the other, whack the coconut with the back of the cleaver a few times all around the center until it cracks open cleanly into two nearly equal halves. Make sure you use the flat side of the cleaver."

So, what is an awakening? An awakening can be a moment of clarity in which a new insight or understanding is gained. With this new awareness the experience of life is seen differently, and new possibilities are opened. Changes in patterns of thought, emotions, and behavior occur. An awakening allows the possibility of growth to new levels of psychological and spiritual maturity.

From "Awareness"

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