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CHRISTOPHER PALBICKI

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All Those Tiny Egos . . .

May 4, 2017

Your ego thrives on making you feel separate from everything else around you . . . better than, less than, prettier than, richer than, more talented than, poorer than, smarter than . . . the laundry list is endless. The best way to get back at the ego - besides making friends with it - is to keep reminding it that its imagined significance is overrated. 

It’s important to understand that your ego lives entirely within your mind, conjured out of thin air. It doesn’t leave your body when it needs a break, returning hours later refreshed and focused. It can’t. If it wasn’t connected to you 24/7 it would cease to exist, just like an astronaut who goes for a jaunt outside their spacecraft without a helmet. You get the picture right? 

Sometimes when I sense my own ego skulking around inside my mind trying to sabotage my Life in any number of ways, I stop what I’m doing, close my eyes (assuming of course I’m not driving at the moment) and embark on the following 2-3 minute visualization exercise that helps bring me ‘back to Earth’ . . . 

 

 

With eyes closed, imagine you’re sitting on the front porch of a house when along comes You walking down the street. There you go . . . you and your little ego tumbling around inside. See yourself getting smaller with each step as you round the corner at the end of the block and disappear from sight. 

Now imagine this unfolding scene from the point of view of a bird soaring 100 feet in the air. As the bird scans the neighborhood, he spots you way down there strolling along . . . you and your little ego. From way up here, there’s probably lots of other people wandering about on foot, or driving along in their cars . . . and they all have a tiny invisible ego inside their minds. 

Let’s get even higher. 

Say you’re now floating along like a balloon adrift up where only the tallest skyscrapers live, say 1,000 feet or so off the ground. There’s a lot of activity visible from way up here. But you can’t discern individual people, just little black dots creeping in all directions. Don’t forget, you’re way down there too . . . a barely noticeable blip moving among the masses, just you and that little ego of yours. From 1,000 feet, even cars are just various colored rectangles moving forward, stopping, moving again, turning corners. All those egos. 

Okay, let’s ditch the balloon and opt for a window seat on your favorite airline. Most passenger jets are zipping along around 35,000 feet, or roughly seven miles up. From this ‘above-the-cloud’ vantage all people are invisible. Sure, you can still make out cars, buses, and the occasional train far below, but any sign of an actual person . . . no chance. But don’t forget, they’ve still got that all-important ego inside them. 

We’re pretty high but not quite enough . . . 

Beyond the paper-thin veil of our planet’s atmosphere drift hundreds of satellites and the occasional spacecraft, all of them suspended in orbit about 75 miles above the surface. Despite what you might have been told, from this altitude, no specific human made object is visible to the naked eye, save from the slight color differentiation cited by astronauts marking the faint borders separating cities from countryside. And yet, billions of people scurry about, drawn this way and that by their own little egos. 

Let’s keep going further out into space . . . 

To date, no human being has ventured further from our home planet than the Apollo astronauts who flew to the Moon, but we’re going to go there in our minds right now. Once we move away from the Earth - 500 miles or so - the only things we can see are a few continental features - mountain ranges, plains, valleys, deserts - along with oceans, ice caps, and cloud cover. That’s it. Saunter about the lunar surface at a distance of 240,000 miles, and even less earthly detail becomes apparent . . . shades of brown bordered by bigger areas of blue, with blotches of white here and there. 

On Valentine’s Day 1990, the Voyager 1 spacecraft, launched in 1977, reached the edge of the solar system at a distance of 3.7 billion miles. NASA turned Voyager’s camera around one last time and snapped a single picture of the Earth, a faint white speck of virtually nothing against the unfathomable void of black space. Carl Sagan summed up the magnitude of the event brilliantly: 

 

“Look again at that dot. That’s here. That’s home. That’s us. On it everyone you love, everyone you know, everyone you ever heard of, every human being who ever was, lived out their lives. The aggregate of our joy and suffering, thousands of confident religions, ideologies, and economic doctrines, every hunter and forager, every hero and coward, every creator and destroyer of civilization, every king and peasant, every young couple in love, every mother and father, hopeful child, inventor and explorer, every teacher of morals, every corrupt politician, every ‘superstar,’ every ‘supreme leader,’ every saint and sinner in the history of our species lived there - on a mote of dust suspended in a sunbeam.” 
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Just let those words sink in a bit and then open your eyes. Now how big and important is that invisible ego of yours? 

 

 

This brief meditative exercise isn’t meant to make any of us feel small or unimportant by the way, but to rather put things into a greater ‘cosmic’ perspective. Yes, we’re all incredibly ‘tiny’ in the grand scheme of things, but we can still realize our fullest potential, create great beauty in our lives, inspire our fellow humans, and see ourselves as more alike one another than not. 

In fact, I believe that’s our collective destiny as a species: to become our best - in whatever way you deem correct - and to assist others to do the same, while doing our part to keep both feet firmly ‘planted on solid ground’ . . . minus that ego of ours that puts us in constant conflict with not only one another, but with ourselves. 

 

Show up.

Pay attention.

Be Yourself.

 

-Christopher

 

PS: If you enjoyed this blog post - or dig the artwork on the site - please consider re-posting, tweeting, etc. The link to the OM Made Facebook page is right at the bottom of this page; check it out and give us a 'like' if you're so inclined. Any and all ways of sharing the message of OM Made Studios via social media is deeply appreciated and can only help get the word out about the importance of Waking Up to our own magnificence. Thanks everyone

In life lesson Tags ego, awaken, awareness, mindset, mindsets, mindfulness, meditation, visualization, visualizations, visualization exercise, kill the ego, kill your ego, tame the ego, voyager 1 spacecraft, 1970s, carl sagan, nasa, solar system, personal insight, personal truth, personal freedom, personal growth, personal discovery, a new perspective
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Life: A Work In Progress

March 12, 2017

Each one of our precious, unique Lives are essentially works in progress . . . collectively composed of little 'chips' here and there applied over long stretches of time. And ever-so-slowly with great patience and a continuously evolving sense of inner understanding, forms take shape, things and ideas gradually make more sense . . . destinies become more clearly defined. 

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In life lesson, inspiration, spirituality Tags life lessons, life purpose, carl yung, psychology, synchronicity, self-reflection, awareness, awaken, mindfulness, atlantic city, the world poker tour, TV production, los angeles, william shatner, new jersey, vanity fair, philosophy, making a life, a rewarding life, michelangelo, artists, art, sculptor, self discovery, personal insight, personal truth, personal growth, personal discovery, personal power, personal freedom, patience, vision, a new perspective, the twilight zone, star trek, captain kirk, treky, 1970s, boston legal, uncertainty, stay calm
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Instead Of Just Looking At Life, Try SEEING It

February 26, 2017

In order to get the most out of Life, you’ve got to be an ‘active’ participant. I suppose in rare circumstances passivity has its merits, but from my perspective, approaching Life as a compliant observer dozing listlessly on the sidelines is equivalent to flushing this wholly unique and truly remarkable opportunity you’ve been given - the one of being born human by the way - right down the proverbial cosmic toilet. 

I would guess that quite a lot of people in the world believe that because they: 

 

(1) Have a job

(2) Own a car or two

(3) Are making their monthly mortgage

(4) Perhaps raising a family, and maybe even

(5) Taking the occasional vacation to ‘get away from it all’

 

that these alone constitute being ‘actively’ engaged in Life. True, it takes an actual vessel - which in this case is your physical body - along with some fairly coordinated motor skills, to propel us from the couch to the dry cleaners and maybe Whole Foods . . . but that’s not what I mean by being actively engaged. 

 

Active engagement means cultivating a heightened sense of overall Awareness for everything unfolding around you and within you, which is the exact opposite of how many people go about their lives; opting instead for passive inertness, reduced to creatures of habitual thought and behavior, stuck in the same old routines day in and day out. Coasting by unchallenged, uninspired, unaware, and safe is anything but engaged . . . it’s more fear-based, and, well . . . plain ol’ boring. 

Or in other words, it’s the difference between actually Seeing this incredibly complex and ultimately mysterious Life unfolding all around you - one that’s bursting with discovery and possibility - instead of merely Looking at it with your eyes half-closed, overcome with panic, apprehension, and maybe even a touch of indifference as 60, 70, or 80 years streak past you in a blur. And then before you know it, ‘poof’ . . . you’re gone. 

    

For centuries, mystical beings from all walks of Life have spoken about ‘lifting the veil’ from this seemingly ‘real’ world of ours so that we can access the authentic knowledge that lies beneath the surface of things. They speak about a different way of interpreting the notion of vision . . . a type of Seeing in which the eyes lodged in our skulls might not be as necessary for true Vision (with a capital ‘V’) as you’d think. It’s about using our Third Eye, said to be located around the middle of the forehead, slightly above the junction of the eyebrows. This is the center of our Knowing. 

I for one, have Seen a awful lot while sitting comfortably in silent meditation, eyes closed. Over time and with a consistent amount of effort and patient dedication, I’ve come to See, thanks to my own Third Eye:

 

-The truth about who I Am: a spiritual being whose core essence is beyond the mere physical.

-What my ultimate Purpose is in this Life is (creative expression).

-The value of tapping into my intuition, and allowing it to gently guide me along. 

-The unbreakable connectedness between myself and all living beings. 

-How I can better relate to my fellow travelers with more compassion, understanding, and forgiveness. 

 

Now this is what it means to See. 

So, all things considered: How’s your vision these days? Do you See the truth of what lies before you, or are you just Looking? 

 

Show up.

Pay attention.

Be Yourself. 

 

-Christopher 

PS: If you enjoyed this blog post - or dig the artwork on the site - please consider re-posting, tweeting, etc. The link to the OM Made Facebook page is right at the bottom of this page; check it out and give us a 'like' if you're so inclined. Any and all ways of sharing the message of OM Made Studios via social media is deeply appreciated and can only help get the word out about the importance of Waking Up to our own magnificence. Thanks everyone! 

 

 

In life lesson, spirituality Tags a new perspective, awareness, awaken, higher consciousness, whole foods, actively engaged with life, conscious, fears, seeing, sight, personal insight, personal discovery, mysticism, vision, third eye, mindfulness, knowing, inner knowing, meditation, life purpose, creativity, creative expression, all is one, oneness, compassion, forgiveness
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Where Happiness ISN'T

December 1, 2016

Most of us have been taught that Happiness exists out there in the external world . . . a ‘great’ job, lots of money, a mansion on the hill, power over others, fame, an alluring partner, etc. But it’s actually the opposite: authentic happiness begins within and extends outward into the world. That’s a major reason why so many people are mixed-up and unhappy these days . . . they’ve got it all backwards. 

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In life lesson, spirituality Tags happiness, other people's expectations, expectations, personal truth, personal insight, personal growth, personal discovery, personal power, awareness, awaken, higher consciousness, traveling, travel, tahiti, pyramids of egypt, leonardo da vinci, last supper, milan, costa rica, DMV, material wealth, shiny new sports car, jerry seinfeld, porches, NYC, material excess, notoriety, fame, personal freedom, airplanes, twitter, facebook, likes, andy warhol, andy warhol quotes, joy, truth, real happiness, create your own reality, illusion, maya, mental attitudes, mindset, mindfulness
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Start . . . Even If You’re NOT Ready

September 22, 2016

The best time to begin anything - whether you feel ready or not - is RIGHT NOW

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In life lesson, inspiration Tags success, richard branson, virgin airlines, 1970s, virgin islands, painting, make art, art, uncertainty, mindfulness, determination
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Make Love, Not Labels

July 14, 2016

Labels: helpful in some cases, deadly in others . . . it helps to know the difference . . . 

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In life lesson Tags labeling, labels, language, declaration of independence, hinduism, bhagavad gita, unconsciousness, mindfulness, soren kierkegaard, donald trump, division, make art, art, creativity, make love
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Give Thanks & Pay It Forward

May 26, 2016

Given the natural precariousness of Life itself and all the myriad uncertainties that threaten each living entity on planet Earth - whether human or not - I’m always deeply humbled whenever I stop and think about the many blessings I enjoy daily . . . perhaps you can relate to some of these . . . 

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In life lesson, inspiration Tags life lessons, blessings, gratitude, awareness, mindfulness, meditation, yoga, creativity, give thanks, life purpose, wisdom, knowledge, compassion, thanksgiving, be of service, meaning
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Divine Plans, Albert Einstein, And How God Thinks . . .

May 12, 2016

I believe in Divine Plans: delicately orchestrated ‘missions’ that are laid-out well in advance of our being born. But if you ever hope to know what your plan is, you’ve gotta pay attention. So yeah, it’s about awakening to what’s going on all around us. 

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In inspiration Tags divine plans, life lessons, pay attention, awaken, college life, freshman, posters, dormroom, the godfather, star wars, taxi driver, bob marley, beatles, albert einstein, led zeppelin, lawrence of arabia, god's thoughts, god, religion, spirituality, san pedro, saturday night live, subconscious, drug use, alcoholism, a new earth, eckhart tolle, higher consciousness, mindfulness, spiritual path
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The Need For Speed?

April 7, 2016

When it comes to making art, there’s a lot to be said about taking your time. But might there be times when doing something rapidly - without thinking too much - might yield the best results? 

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In art Tags slowing down, notice more, ingmar bergman, films, filmmaking, the seventh seal, dance of death, creativity, painting, pay attention, artists, drawing, life lessons, mindfulness
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Never A Dull Ocean

March 24, 2016

For those of us with the patience to look deeply and thoughtfully at ALL things in Life, nothing in Nature - including ourselves - remains the same from one moment to the next. 

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In life lesson, spirituality, inspiration Tags topanga canyon, los angeles, malibu, pacific palisades, woody guthrie, neil young, dennis hopper, humphrey bogart, bohemian, pacific ocean, notice more, pay attention, mother nature, life is short, mindfulness, breathe, gratitude, appreciation, awaken
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