Roger Bannister and Evolution

Posted by Allison Mack | Filed under Musings

Ok… So, apparently this was an amazing post, because the responses I have been receiving are so bloody cool and inspiring!

I have no definitive answer to this question. Like most of the posts I, well… um… post. I am merely seeking to have a deeper understanding of myself. A deeper knowledge of my own experience so that I may live the most rich, responsible, ethical, compassionate, and exciting life possible.

So here goes the exploration for me.

My understanding of human construct is similar to the definition Matthew shared to world construct: “to build or assemble something by putting together separate parts in an ordered way.”

I think that we as human beings have no choice but to do this the minute we are born, as way of simply surviving in the world. Meaning that the moment we are born, we are these blank entities that see no difference between ourselves and the rest of the world. To refer back to my “balance” post and the doctor speaking on the difference between the right and left brain. We have no understanding of our abstract selves, our abstract I, therefore we see no difference between me and you and wall and chair and bear and dog. We simply see the world as an extension of ourselves.

However, this is not true, and through experiencing ourselves in the world, we recognize the separation and the differences between me and you, me and the chair, me and the dog, and we begin to build a sense of ourselves; a sense of who we are separate from the rest of the world. Now in this building of us, of ourselves, we are also building our understanding of “not us” of the rest of the world.

It is my hypothesis that this is the human construct. The understanding that we build of ourselves, the world, and the way the two work and relate.

Whoah! That was tough for me to explain and I hope it made sense… Whew!

So, how does this relate to beliefs?

Well, I feel like when I believe something I will not question it. It is simply the way the world works. It’s a part of my “construct” that I never question, I just believe it is so. Now, this can be as simple as “I should always walk on my feet,” or as abstract as “My god is better than yours.”

Point being… we all have different experiences that ground us in our constructs and influence us in our beliefs. So, how does this relate to limiting beliefs and the Olympics?

Well, I feel that sometimes we can limit ourselves with our beliefs and refuse to push our limitations with the belief that it is simply not possible to do more–be more than what already exists. I feel like the Olympics are an amazing example of how these beliefs can be challenged and ultimately changed.

Michael Phelps is an amazing example of this in his capacity to break his own world records on a consistent basis. The man who first broke the 4 minute mile, Roger Bannister, is another example of this. For years it was a global belief that this simply could not be done… Until it was. Now this is not even something that is questioned.

The 4 minute mile is now a standard for Olympic runners. Thanks to Roger Bannister, our capacity to push our limits as human beings was stretched and strengthened, we evolved! I feel this is an amazing and inspiring example of what we as human beings have the potential to achieve by simply letting go of the beliefs that strangle our core abilities to progress and ask the question “what if.”

I really enjoyed reading these responses and want to thank you all deeply for your thoughts and ideas! It is so amazing!

xo
Allison

PS… I wanted to highlight this comment because I think it’s really really cool and it brings to light a topic I would love to explore next.

What is justice? We can deal with truth separately… let’s do one at a time… baby steps ;)

1. Kirk D. aka “SPARTACUS” Says:
August 15th, 2008 at 4:48 am

Hey Alli-Mack,
Here is my 2 cents worth…
I believe human construct is simply our nature in action. We all have the remarkable ability to think, to act on our thoughts, to communicate and respond/relate to others. We can’t escape it, though some can try to deny it. We all seem to learn about life based on what we experience personally and what others have experienced. We can’t help but to influence each other and I believe it is our duty on this planet to do so. We all have opinions on what it is we should and shouldn’t do. This is the our personal commitment to our view of life, (free-will) and it is a beautiful thang…Lord Palmerston in the House of Commons on July 21, 1849 said, “Opinions are stronger than armies. Opinions, if they are founded in truth and justice, will in the end prevail against the bayonets of infantry, the fire of artillery and the charges of calvary….” (This asks the questions, What is truth? What is justice? Hopefully to be discussed at a later time.) Opinions are truly powerful, and I’m reminded of the Emperor with no closes. How do we know if we in a sense have on closes simply based on our opinions, regardless of how popular or unpopular are opinions may be? Great agents of change always seemed to walk to the beat of a different drummer, swimming up stream and cutting against the grain of society. I pray that I am at partially dressed or at least learning to get dressed. Scary at times, but this quote seems to reinforce Alli-Mack’s new commitment of 30 minutes a day of reflection in search of the answer to this question of “right/correct belief” . Dr. John Mackay, a former President of Princeton Seminary, said, “Commitment without reflection is fanaticism in action. But reflection with commitment is the paralysis of all action.”
This causes me to ask the questions, who am I really and why do I do what I do?
2. Kirk D. aka “SPARTACUS” Says:
August 15th, 2008 at 4:55 am

Sorry about that.
The last quote by Dr. John Mackay, a former President of Princeton Seminary, should have said, “Commitment without reflection is fanaticism in action. But reflection WITHOUT commitment is the paralysis of all action.”

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Read more | Comments (61) | August 17th, 2008

Balance

Posted by Allison Mack | Filed under Blog

Balance. Equanimity. The tight rope. An equal pull between two things. The dictionary defines balance to be a physical equilibrium.

My definition? Presence, consistency, living the thing we all seem to strive for: the concept of being ‘in the moment”. It is amazing to me that when you begin to think on a certain concept or idea, you start to see or hear about it everywhere. I have been contemplating this concept of balance for several weeks and have come to the conclusion that for me, balance is synonymous with enlightenment. They are the same thing.

And since living a balanced life style is incredibly challenging (like trying to balance on an oversized exercise ball in high heels), enlightenment doesn’t look like what I imagined initially.

I mean, here I am, picturing myself completely “enlightened.”

“OOMMMMM” Like a Buddha on a mountain.

Yoga gear, hairy armpits, unshaven legs, and totally “enlightened”.

Floating through life with no strife or struggle.

Yep! That’s me!

OR NOT!!!!

It’s interesting because in my limited time of seeking self-understanding, the more I introspect, the crazier I feel. But I think that I had nirvana mixed up with apathy. The beauty is in the constant pull between the two.

To understand the structure of our left brain; embracing our astounding capacity to create an abstract while at the same time recognizing the beauty of the chaos within our interconnected-ness and the recognition the we can never know and understand anything!

This video I threw in with this blog is such an awesome depiction of this exact concept.

The equal pull between the right and left sides of our brain.

The structured and chaotic, visceral and intellectual, joy and struggle, war and peace, life and death.

Life=balance.

Who’d a thought?

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Read more | Comments (31) | July 24th, 2008