A Hormonal Ape

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TaCmSbdPskY

A Hormonal Ape

Fundamentally, we are emotional creatures controlled by the hormonal balance within our body. Certain activities manipulate and/or influence our hormonal chemical balance. Our mood, our character, our general energetic levels are all contingent on our hormonal balance. Many things we do stifle the production of beneficial hormones and promote the production of detrimental hormones or vice versa, but it is frequently the case that we experience too much stress and too little contentment.

The hormone(s) responsible for stress are produced for a reason, we do require them, because stressful scenarios require a response. These hormones impel us to enact that response. Sometimes, however, we can become imprisoned in behavioural patterns which promote stress under the guise that we are being productive and we need to remain productive to ensure we have a belly full of food and an abode to rest our head. Very fundamental sustenance requirements that all animals have. Although it is good and healthy to ensure we have those things, we must protect and preserve our emotional humanity. This requires us to be very sensitive to our body as well as our minds. Through various methods we are often told to entrap ourselves in our mind and remain there because we must remain productive, regurgitate facts, listen to authority, etc.

The activities that we engage in day to day define us; we are what we repeatedly do, be it through habit or dedication, we become what we do daily. Our activities not only help us exert ourselves and experiment with our capabilities but they also help us strengthen our fortitude, balance our hormones and forge ourselves as ever-evolving characters. It's a particularly human-tendency to ponder things, I think a lot of us have an inclination to get philosophical on the simplest of things. I have many times gotten on a long philosophical train of thought on things as trivial as my pet cat, which is only one of many examples. This is a uniquely human trait and it allows us to acquire lessons from everything we do. Ancient teachings of life being a metaphorical school were not dogmatic religions, they were just people who enjoyed extracting lessons from their daily activities and daily encounters because it helped them evolve as a character.

Our character is not wholly inherited, we must actively forge ourselves and seek experience. Experience provides us with lessons and influence. How you absorb these lessons and influences will often control the value of that experience, subjectively speaking. I've encountered characters who mould around their influence rather than mould that influence into a subjective lesson. That is my own experience but I believe these characters are common. Unfortunately, that method is an exceptionally inadequate approach to forging your own character.

For those who potentially have difficulty extracting lessons from their experience, I will provide you with a tool that has assisted me and allowed me to subjectively contemplate myself, my day-to-day interactions and my spiritual experiences. First, allow me to inform you that my lessons are primarily garnered through cycling, trail-running (running up and down mountains at my fastest possible endurance pace) and some dabbling with herbal allies, and some experiences which will remain private. Now, when I say "herbal allies" I am referring to marijuana because it has never made me lazy or slow-of-thought, it has assisted me in many ways. I never abuse the herb or misuse the herb, I am fully aware every time I ingest it that this is a learning experience not to be taken lightly. However, I do not encourage the senseless recreational use of illegal substances. I approach every altered-psychological experience with caution and restraint. But, to quote the brilliant Graham Hancock, if we as citizens can't make sovereign decisions over our own consciousness we can't claim any freedom at all.

Extracting lessons from your experience is difficult in many cases, for me, some of the lessons required serious contemplation. Ultimately though, it helped me forge who I am right now. The ultimate tool you can utilize for free every single day is the morning-walk. I'd stray from densely populated areas and seek trails or quiet neighbourhoods. Firstly though, you must accept who and what you are as you are and understand that you are not a static being, you're an ever-evolving character, constantly adapting to new scenarios and adopting new habits. View your interactions with others objectively, assess how you behave and seriously consider whether you could offer more than you have. Identify rigid behavioural patterns and seek a solution. Make a conscious effort to never be upset or angry with yourself, this only stifles the solution process. You can always seek the solution and redeem yourself.

Next, an exceptionally effective tool which will supplement your walk is to shortly thereafter record what you thought. A record of your thought is vital.  Mine happens to be in the form of a Blog but there are many forms, journalling being the most effective and private. Journals can allow you to very deeply delve into the inner intricacies of your mind, revealing subliminal urges and subliminal intentions. I have often discovered things through journaling that I was completely unaware I even had in my mind. Perhaps though, you could bring some type of microphone with you that will allow you instantly record the thought. I have occasionally thought about something which I have forgotten once I have returned from the walk and am ready to journal it, leaving me unsure whether I'll ever re-discover the thought. My memory has been gradually getting better and better through this process though, with less thoughts being forgotten. I know that I could probably stop and record it on my IPod but once I begin typing it's like I've detonated the charge on a dam and the water which was blocked is now just pouring out.

Through this process of self-cultivation and self-discovery, I've begun discovering the vocation which will fill my belly and provide an abode to rest mine and my wife and kids heads. Additionally, it has helped me  maintain a healthy hormonal balance which allows me to navigate this world with an increased level of clarity and contentment, although I do have my share of sadness, I'm far from perfect. You can't pretend we live in a rose-garden, but you can do everything in your power to plant those roses. The world is corrupt, people are dying, but that's due to the decisions of a generation which will inevitably die, to be replaced by this young generation which will then have their turn to influence the world. I know that all of you fellow teenagers reading this are full of desire, perhaps even full of disgust and anger at the way things are but you will have your turn to influence the world and you can actively pursue it. First though, you must ensure that you yourself are in the correct condition to do so, and you can start today.