The unconventional psychologist Thomas Szasz pointed out the strange contradiction in the cultural standard of what we consider sane in this quote: “If you talk to God, you are praying; If God talks to you, you have schizophrenia.” In societies with a negative association around hearing voices, people normally have negative experiences when they hear voices. In places with a positive cultural association, people will have a positive experience, believing that people who hear such things are somehow gifted, they are shamans or healers. Sometimes what people refer to as “the voice of God” is something that we all have access to, the voice of our intuition, our deepest internal wisdom. When we listen to it and heed it, wonderful things just might happen.

On 90s sitcoms like Seinfeld the characters would debate whether it was fair to break up with someone by a phone call after 3 dates, or perhaps that person deserved the dignity of a meeting in person. At some point it became less common to call people, instead just using text, and eventually just ghosting, not responding to their messages or calls at all. We can even find articles that attempt to justify ghosting, saying that it is somehow kinder than having a difficult conversation. If we do take the time to have difficult conversations with them, to discuss our feelings, to tell them what we really think even though we’d rather shy away… That lays the groundwork for a fundamentally kinder society. Read the transcript and find important links on the site: [A Beautiful Thought - Something Else: A New Way of Relating: Episode 399](https://beautifulpodcast.com/something-else-a-new-way-of-relating-episode-399/)

Comedian Buddy Hackett once said “I've had a few arguments with people, but I never carry a grudge. You know why? While you're carrying a grudge, they're out dancing.” When we hold a grudge, we spend mental energy, making our thoughts pay rent on something that makes us unhappy and rarely serves to make us any wiser. Likewise if we have the habit of “shoulding”, having beliefs and thought patterns about how the world “should” be. The world is as it is, and no amount of mere demands from us can change it. In fact, if we really want to change it, it’s best to see it accurately. Then once we can see it accurately, we can choose to also see it in a way that empowers us, or helps us to see the beauty in the world. One way or another, we carry our thoughts around. If we choose our beliefs well, they will help us on our journey.

To be afraid, there must be a part of us that wants to be afraid. As long as we are willing to be afraid, there will be people who play on our willingness. Our buttons are exposed to anyone who has studied the map to find them. There is a path to let go of that willingness. Love is a verb In the beginning chapters of "The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People", Covey tells a story where a man stands up at a seminar asking how he can continue his marriage when the loving feeling is gone. Covey's reply is simple: "Love your wife." Covey explains, love is sold to us as a noun in Hollywood movies, but love is a verb. Even if we think we don't have control over our emotions, we do have control over our actions. We can listen, appreciate, show affection through touch. Free to feel good I was a little stressed in the uber on my way to Asunción airport. I didn't know if my flight 9 hours later would leave at all, and if I'd somehow be stuck in the airport due to the increased curfews. Despite that, or perhaps because of that, I took a moment to thank the driver and wish health to him and his family. I finally boarded the flight, and arrived in Panama City. Waiting to disembark, I made conversation with a Canadian fellow, and again I wished him health and a safe journey. I was delighted when he took it to another level by saying calmly, without hesitation "have a good time." I was amazed, because my limits were revealed. Here I was thinking about health, and this gentleman was wishing me so much more - enjoyment. The relaxation system When we think about threats, normally our sympathetic "fight or flight" system will engage. The body looks for ways to hide or run from predators, or to defend ourselves in the moment. The body pushes more resources to those ends, and so it has less to put towards our immune systems, making us open to viral threats. When we relax, pray or meditate, we activate the parasympathetic system. We send a strong message to our bodies that there