Can we just get straight to the point instead of rambling?

wearyrider16 said:Unimaginable.

It only happens when people start prying; my mind just drifts away.
It wanders. It listens to the rhythm of my heart. I am simply not present. I am gone. Something far greater than myself takes hold.
Into the deep silence, fading out with a heavy breath. I become a strange sight to behold.
Unimaginable.
They try to force me back, trying to ground me with their loud, incessant questioning. They want me right here, right now.
Trapped in schedules, regulations, chores, social circles, material pursuits, fleeting conflicts, and the ticking of mechanical clocks.
But I am not part of this.
I am running.
I would much rather sink into the honest darkness than swim through a world of false light.
My world is somewhere else entirely.

This is absolutely beautiful. 🙂

Joseph Bailey41 said:The sense of identity—and even the very thought of it—is really just a construct. If the mind keeps rebuilding it over and over, or constantly checking in to see if it's still there, then it eventually just fades away. It disappears. I don't know if there's some lingering 'identity' during those moments that I just fail to perceive, because my focus is entirely on the birds, the trees, or whatever else happens to drift into my consciousness. In those moments, I am not 'me'; I am simply the space through which all of this flows. What I feel during those times (this sort of reaction to beauty) isn't 'mine,' and it doesn't have anything to do with who I am. What usually snaps me out of that state is seeing another person who might try to start an interaction with me. It drags me right back to 'normal,' and honestly, it's incredibly jarring. It feels like being plunged into ice-cold water. My dog probably senses it too; he'll start barking or tugging at my sleeve to get me moving, which gives me the perfect excuse to cut off whatever autopilot conversation I'm having and keep walking. Once I'm somewhere private, I have a chance to slip back into that state—to "talk" to the birds, the trees, the clouds, or the mushrooms... I'll "ask" them if I can pick them, and I feel like I get an answer.

In the city, this would only happen when I was as lonely as Jesus. During seated meditation with my eyes closed, it never happened. Out in nature, though, all I have to do is let go—basically, stop trying so hard to be 'me.'

(Sorry for the tangent, this turned out way longer than I intended. 😢 )

I understand completely... what I dislike most is when I am disconnected from the world and existence, sitting on some forest clearing, only to be pulled back by the presence of another human. They are simply a distraction.

The city... it is a necessary evil. I often choose routes (whenever possible) where there are fewer people and less traffic, just so I can somewhat emerge from myself and submerge into the space around me.

Thanks. It’s nice to know I’m not alone in this. 🙂

Honestly, my favorite thing is heading out to a bigger park near my house. When I hug a tree, take some deep breaths, and just try to sync up with all that nature energy, people start staring... I’ve kind of gotten used to being looked at like I’ve lost my marbles.

The truth is, we’ve been ripped away from our natural habitats and shoved into concrete jungles, office buildings with artificial lighting, and these shallow, fake social norms. Because of that, anyone who stays conscious and actually connects with the rhythm of life gets labeled as a freak.

Sometimes I feel like crying when I have to clock in at work and disconnect from my real world... especially today, seeing the snow dusting the branches in the woods... while everyone else thinks the peak of life is decorating a pine tree for Christmas and taking selfies under artificial lights just to show off on Instagram.

It's pretty pathetic.

It turns out we're basically strangers on our own planet, living among our own species but with completely opposite needs.

They want to suck us in and control us, yet we keep fighting back.

It makes you want to scream.

I truly admire your courage to hug trees without worrying about what people might think. You’ve clearly moved past all that superficial social pressure.

You possess such a delicate, sensitive soul, and I realize how difficult it can be to navigate a world that feels so abrasive.

As for those concrete jungles and endless skyscrapers, I simply cannot thrive there. Back when I was living in an apartment in downtown Chicago, my energy levels were constantly bottoming out. I felt drained. I crave greenery and solitude, and thank God, I finally live somewhere that provides both.

Modern offices, brutalist concrete structures, those glass skyscrapers—it’s unimaginable to me. It feels like being trapped in a prison, as if someone has reached in and stifled my very spirit. Now, I am genuinely trying to figure out a career path that doesn't require me to exist in those environments.

I am incredibly sensitive to my surroundings; there are certain parts of the city where I can barely bring myself to set foot—metaphorically speaking, of course, because if I have to go, I go, but I find them repulsive. Places like Main Street... I feel spiritually hollowed out in spots like that.

Honestly, everything about modern life feels so hollow. All this artificial glitter, the constant glow of screens, the massive billboards everywhere... it just seems like people are forced to be nothing more than cogs in a machine, servants and slaves to their employers. It really is the rock bottom of human existence, just as you said.

I don't know. Perhaps we should all strive toward greater self-sufficiency. There is so much we can accomplish on our own, and as a starting point, it is vital to remain awake and discern what is truth and what is merely a lie.

wearyrider16 said:Don't get me wrong, I love the joy of it, but man, I’d give anything to just get a decent night's sleep and actually feel human for once.

What good is art or being some poetic soul if you can't even meet your basic needs?
It’s honestly better to be "normally boring" and have a "simple brain."
You head into work, do your thing, and then just crash into a comfy recliner with the remote in hand.
Those people are happy. Right here, right now, they’re the ones living the dream... I actually envy those little robots. As time goes on, it feels more and more true...

Deep down, there's this incredibly honest part of me—this life inside me—that's constantly screaming to connect with something beyond this material world and stay connected for as long as possible.
Basically, it's the exact same thing you're saying, just frozen in time.
We're talking about the same stuff, just using different words.

Imagine living in your own little bubble for years because it acts as therapy—a way to escape all the lies, the fakes, and the idiots in this whole absurd theater we call life... but then you realize even that starts becoming a burden. I'm just tired of catering to my body, and I'm just as tired of trying to escape it.

And in the end, words still fail to capture it all...

The Little Prince put it perfectly: words are a source of misunderstanding.

If you know what I mean, I guess?!

Yeah, I’m with you there—words are honestly just a breeding ground for misunderstandings.
Words just don't cut it sometimes. I honestly can't find the right way to put it—it feels impossible to capture all those vivid images we carry around in our heads and hold deep in our hearts.

Maybe the easiest way to live is to surround yourself with people who actually "get" your world. I know, I know—it’s a bit of a trap because true, 100% understanding is basically unimaginable. You try to bridge that gap and you often just end up feeling disappointed when you realize how far apart you really are. But still, there’s something special about finding those people who resonate with you, even if it’s only partially. It makes the whole journey feel a little less lonely.
I don't think we're all meant to be some kind of magic cure for "Weltschmerz," you know? Life is heavy like that. But I do believe it's possible to at least help soothe the sting a little bit.

You can't really freeze anything in place, because time is always shifting things around. It’s just the nature of life, isn't it? Everything is constantly in motion.
You know, you can just try—moment by moment, even if it feels like a Sisyphus-style struggle—to look at the world with genuine wonder and a sense of gratitude.
Look, I truly believe that for every ounce of sadness we encounter, there’s an equal amount of beauty waiting to be found. It all comes down to where we choose to point our focus. It really is about deciding what we’re going to pay attention to.
I really believe we shouldn't be jumping to conclusions about everything happening around us. It’s easy to start assigning meaning or predicting outcomes before anything has actually settled, but I think there's a lot of value in just letting things exist as they are first.
I'm guessing you've already had your fair share of experience with the whole yin and yang concept, haven't you?

Perfection doesn't exist, and honestly, neither do we. We all have our own set of limitations and flaws that we have to deal with every single day.

I honestly feel like we shouldn't be looking at how other people live their lives as if they’re just some "pig-brained" patterns or predictable tropes. At the end of the day, we have absolutely no way of knowing what’s actually going on inside someone else's head, and if we aren't careful, we might end up looking just as judgmental and narrow-minded to them as we think they are to us.
Look, it’s just the truth: you have people who are simple and driven, and then you have those complex, layered souls. Honestly, it’s almost unimaginable for them to find any common ground. They're just operating on completely different frequencies.

That’s exactly why you have to hunt for those people whose brand of crazy actually resonates with your own. It’s all about finding that specific frequency where your weirdness meets theirs.
You really never know when or where you’re going to run into them. They're out there.
But you’re never going to find them if you're just sitting there alone, lost in the deep, quiet corners of your own head.
To really get anywhere, you have to look past your own gut instincts and find a way to push through those built-in biases. It’s about stepping outside your own head for a second.
We really ought to make an effort to see the beauty in imperfection. It’s all about perspective, honestly. And if you can manage to develop a good sense of humor? That’s the real game-changer. When you start looking at the world through a slightly more irreverent lens, everything just becomes so much more entertaining.

Ever since I was a little girl, I’ve always told myself the same thing: when I get old, my husband will be the first to go ( 😁 which, I guess, is the most realistic scenario).
I’ll find myself a cozy little cottage out in the countryside—maybe one of those rustic, old-fashioned places with a private well in the yard and a massive tree nearby with branches so heavy they practically threaten to crush the roof. I can see myself resting in its shade on an old, weathered bench. I’d have a wood-burning stove and a collection of chipped ceramic bowls, tin plates, and mismatched mugs for drinking linden tea—the kind you brew yourself from leaves you just picked. That sounds like the life, honestly.
Somewhere deep in the woods, or maybe right on the edge of them.
I imagine waking up to the sound of birds chirping and drifting off to sleep to the rhythm of the crickets.
My days would just be spent walking, gathering wild berries for jam or tea, gardening, digging, and getting my hands dirty with handfuls of soil.
And when I finally pass away, I suppose nobody will even know. I’ll just become part of the forest; we’ll merge together as if I were never even a separate thing in all this beauty.
I’ll turn into the grass, the ivy, the poppies, and the wheat.

mistylynx said:Ever since I was a little girl, I’ve always told myself the same thing: when I get old, my husband will be the first to go ( 😁 which, I guess, is the most realistic scenario).
I’ll find myself a cozy little cottage out in the countryside—maybe one of those rustic, old-fashioned places with a private well in the yard and a massive tree nearby with branches so heavy they practically threaten to crush the roof. I can see myself resting in its shade on an old, weathered bench. I’d have a wood-burning stove and a collection of chipped ceramic bowls, tin plates, and mismatched mugs for drinking linden tea—the kind you brew yourself from leaves you just picked. That sounds like the life, honestly.
Somewhere deep in the woods, or maybe right on the edge of them.
I imagine waking up to the sound of birds chirping and drifting off to sleep to the rhythm of the crickets.
My days would just be spent walking, gathering wild berries for jam or tea, gardening, digging, and getting my hands dirty with handfuls of soil.
And when I finally pass away, I suppose nobody will even know. I’ll just become part of the forest; we’ll merge together as if I were never even a separate thing in all this beauty.
I’ll turn into the grass, the ivy, the poppies, and the wheat.

Still, I really hope you manage to find joy in all of that alongside your husband. Unless, of course, your actual goal is to outlive him... 🙂

I honestly love that image. Just a simple life, much like what our dear ancestors used to live back in the day. 👍

Back then, I was just a kid, looking at everything through those innocent eyes, so I didn't really notice anyone else in the story..
Now, obviously, I see it all clearly, but I guess that sense of solitude has been etched into my mind from the very beginning..

Do you think it’s possible to find a little bit of comfort even when you're single?

I'm not quite sure about comfort, to be honest. I was thinking more along the lines of peace.
But, I suppose if you can actually enjoy your own company—like, if you're truly okay being alone and you actually like who you are—then maybe, just maybe, you can find some sort of comfort there too.

But seriously, why does Monday always feel like such a total drag when you're stuck in those little isolation booths?

I mean, humans are social creatures by nature, sure, but that heavy sense of suffering? It can definitely hit you even when you aren't alone.
Still, I guess there’s something to be said for solitude. Personally, I feel like if you haven't figured out how to be okay on your own, then being around people probably won't help much either.

Maybe the whole secret to finding the real value in being alone is realizing that we should probably hold onto whatever makes us feel secure in every single moment of our lives.

I don't quite get this one

Look, I’m telling you, true security is found right here in the present moment. {The real traps are when you keep circling back to old wounds}

@ wanderingmoose13

I don't think we should label how other people think as "brainless" patterns. We can't really know what's going on inside someone else's head, and honestly, we might look just as bad to them.
But yeah, there are definitely simple and complex personalities out there that just struggle to connect.

I think you missed my point, but it doesn't really matter.
There are definitely people living at a tribal level of consciousness—that's pretty much why the world is such a mess right now.

That’s just your take on me underestimating or judging people by putting them into "simple" or "complex" boxes... and so on.

I'm not sure how much you know about this—it's a huge topic—but it's crystal clear to me: we live in a society run by psychopaths and sociopaths. Are you actually aware of that? Because they impact every single one of us, whether directly or indirectly.

Getting into the background of all that doesn't make sense in this thread.

It’s not quite as simple as it looks.

wearyrider16 said:@ wanderingmoose13

I don't think we should label how other people think as "brainless" patterns. We can't really know what's going on inside someone else's head, and honestly, we might look just as bad to them.
But yeah, there are definitely simple and complex personalities out there that just struggle to connect.

I think you missed my point, but it doesn't really matter.
There are definitely people living at a tribal level of consciousness—that's pretty much why the world is such a mess right now.

That’s just your take on me underestimating or judging people by putting them into "simple" or "complex" boxes... and so on.

I'm not sure how much you know about this—it's a huge topic—but it's crystal clear to me: we live in a society run by psychopaths and sociopaths. Are you actually aware of that? Because they impact every single one of us, whether directly or indirectly.

Getting into the background of all that doesn't make sense in this thread.

It’s not quite as simple as it looks.

The old version of me would've just laughed this off. But the current me? I'm starting to wonder if there's some actual truth to this, or if my worldview is just getting totally skewed... 🤔

Roger Kern16 said:The old version of me would've just laughed this off. But the current me? I'm starting to wonder if there's some actual truth to this, or if my worldview is just getting totally skewed... 🤔

It's always "us" vs "them." Such a tired cliché (just a sticky note stuck in my brain). Why do we let "them" decide who "we" are? Defining ourselves based on who they aren't. Where do "we" actually exist, or even who are "we," without "them" to push against? And what are "they" without "us"? Crystal ball is looking pretty clear on that one...

I suppose we really do get to decide how much "they" actually matter or how much influence they have over us. At the end of the day, nobody can just waltz into every single corner of your life or try to dictate who you are without your permission, I guess.

mistylynx said:I suppose we really do get to decide how much "they" actually matter or how much influence they have over us. At the end of the day, nobody can just waltz into every single corner of your life or try to dictate who you are without your permission, I guess.

Unless this whole consumerist, mindless lifestyle turns into some kind of conditioning—where your choices feel rigged—you’ll mostly just react the way people expect. But even then, you can still choose how to act, right? Just out of pure spite for the status quo... La vita e bella.