If we choose, we can live in a world of comforting illusion.
– Noam Chomsky
How many times do we act motivated by situations, ideas or things that are not real?We can even make (or not make) life-changing decisions while under the spell of illusions. Think about how risky that is: you can paralyse yourself over something that will never really exist. Imagine not doing something you’ve always wanted to do just because you are under the illusion that if you do it, something horrible will happen. Isn’t it sad, and frustrating?
There are some illusions that give us a false sense of comfort. They tend to appear when we want to excuse someone for a negative and damaging behaviour toward us; or (worst case scenario) when we feel so embarrassed about our actions, that we look for ways to avoid dealing with the truth; our mind then concocts parallel realities that ‘help’ us avoid dealing with the consequences of our actions. These illusions are far more dangerous and damaging than the ones I described in the previous paragraph; they keep us from growing and they only facilitate turning into negativity. How much pain and hurt have these ‘comforting’ illusions caused? Who knows!
Reality is not always easy to face. It can make us nervous and anxious. But, isn’t it better to know that we are living a real life, full of real choices and true actions? It’s not pleasant to acknowledge that we have been motivated by illusions, but it’s the only path worth taking if we want to begin a new stage in our lives; one that is headed towards the good, towards kindness and towards the light.
Are there any illusions permeating your life? It’s healthy to talk about it! You know you can find me at docbeverly@aol.com.