Get It Out Of Your System

Your Being is a System.

Background music from a distant pavilion fills the air. A man is singing Valerie. The grass is green, and all the trees surrounding the field I’m standing in provide a deep texture to the landscape. Young kids are learning soccer. Fields of flowers run across the dirt path that encircles the field. A woman who looks like someone I used to know is walking a large black dog wearing a pair of shoes I own. Today, I watched as my cat stared at a bird sitting on the window ledge, so close she could get it if there wasn’t a screen. Someone makes a lollipop, and someone hands it to a kid who is walking through the grass with their parents. It’s all about energy.

Establishing Your System

The home for our self resides in the confines of our body. Meeting in unison, everything physical, from our hands, feet, and mouths to everything non-physical, our thoughts, ideas, and sense of humor, comprises our existence. When we think of ourselves, there are many vantage points available to us. We might first think of our body before our mind, or consider a habit before we do a hobby. What we think of first provides insight into our values. For instance, considering something physical versus non-physical might demonstrate that we value our appearance more than we do our thoughts. This can be scaled out to consider collective values. What society appreciates, by making it popular culture, shares insight into the collective's energy. Acknowledging what we think about ourselves and what we think about collectively demonstrates how we first exist as our own system and second as part of a larger system.

Nonetheless, it is worth emphasizing that all parts of us, physical and non-physical, have their place in the construction of our being. It remains the individual's choice to determine which parts are most representative of them, and thus, which parts receive more energy. This energy reception should not come from internal sources, but rather, from external sources. That one should be recognized as themselves. However, one should caution against overemphasizing any one part in particular, as it is imperative to establish equality within one's own system. One must recognize for themselves that their mind and body are an interconnected system, and that one impacts the other. A nail is useless without a hammer; the mind is useless without the body.

The body receives sensory information about our environment, which we, in turn, use to make inferences. Smell, taste, vision, touch, and sound are all external stimuli that we experience internally. For this internal and external experience to meet equilibrium with the individual, one must first establish an equal balance within themselves to realize it outside of themselves. We can consider how the body is the physical manifestation of the self in time and space. It is through the body that one can realize they exist as both the perceiver and the perceived, the influencer and the influenced. That one resides within the body, not as the body. Further, that one is experiencing their thoughts, they are not the thoughts themselves. This leaves one to consider that they themselves are an energy that embodies life. One must be cognizant of their decisions and actions as they seek to be this embodiment. What one considers when making a decision showcases their character.

To be whole, one must recognize all aspects of their existence and validate them as a piece of them. Often, these parts of us become intertwined. Smell becomes a feeling. Repetition of a skill becomes instinct. Our outer and inner existences become one when we are present in our experience. Through this, our system is not only intertwined between mind and body but is also entangled with our environment. Experiences are readily available to us by being present. What we wrap ourselves up in, the imaginative worlds we create, and the real-life stories we choose to follow are our decisions to make. We are the agents driving our lives in a direction, and it is through our actions that we become part of other systems. Participation in these interconnected systems of life is non-negotiable. By existing, you become part of something bigger than yourself.

Interconnected Systems

Choice presents itself to the individual through time. Every moment can be actionable; this does not imply that every moment must be productive. This is only to say that choice permeates our lives, and we can choose how to spend our present. When we avoid experiencing the emotions that pass through us, we become enablers of stuck energy. Energy in motion, emotions, demand to be experienced. It is part of embodying life. Likewise, one’s self will be demanded to be free of constraint. That to live as oneself, as they are, is essential to embodying their life. Otherwise, one becomes an imposter of oneself in their body. This disconnect wreaks havoc on the nervous system. When one is as themselves, they can live out their truth. This is essential for interacting with other beings. So that one can be recognized for themselves, and not as an imposter of themselves, is essential to forming strong connections.

For our systems to interact healthily, we must know how to regulate our own systems. To do so, it is imperative to know how one stabilizes and balances. For stability, one must know equal energy in and out, and for balance, one must know equal exertion and rest. This will look different for all individuals as exertion is dependent on stability. We might view regulation as a process. One must first fuel themselves to have the energy necessary to make decisions and take action, but one must further balance their expenditures with proper rest. This two-step process must be mastered for regulation to occur. Otherwise, continuous exertion will lead to inevitable depletion. To avoid this, one must identify best practices in four areas to achieve a regulated system: fuel (energy in), movement (energy out), contribution (exertion), and sleep (rest). These may be discovering how one best fuels themselves, moves themselves, contributes to embodying their life, and rests.

It is worth noting that for a contribution to be made, one must first know how to fill oneself up. They must adopt a practice that works for them to have the energy to contribute. Nonetheless, it should be recognized that contribution is not optional. Our membership in the system of existence is a requirement. We, however, determine our state of being within existence as we carry out actions that determine the energy we have to put forth. Being selfless in action does not mean one has deprived themselves. It means they have energized themselves. Being in contribution to others requires one to know how they hold their energy within their bounds so that there isn't a disruption to their system. If everyone is dysregulated, the system of collective participation will grow into chaos.

Getting It Out

Each of us will experience something so unpleasant that we must vent about it. Each of us will experience something so exciting we won’t be able to stop talking about it. In either case, we must get it out of our system. How we choose to get it out determines the energy we are putting out. Some ways are better than others. However, this nonetheless emphasizes the importance of connection to other systems. When it is our turn to listen, we do and can expect reciprocity when it is our turn to speak. That we be excited for others without envy and empathize when they need it. As energy is constantly being exchanged between people, situations, and the natural world, we must recognize that our shared systems all require an energetic release.

So when your system, or the system, is yanking you to express, express. Cry. Laugh. Run. Walk. Walk. Draw. Sing. Paint. Engage in some movement of you mind or body that releases. Remember that when the mind is busy, moving the body will calm it. Your system is one to be handled with care. It is not meant to live in a rush. To hurry from place to place keeps the body from present. As done the mind jumping from one scenario to the next. Find a way to let energy move through you so that you may remain present.