My AA brother and I were sitting on a park bench, looking out at the ocean, each with our thoughts.
My friend cleared his throat and announced, “Waves are emotions, currents are thoughts, and tides are attitudes and perceptions.”
Puzzled, I said, “Where the hell did that come from?”
Looking out over the harbour, he said, “The winds of life create waves. They start small, and if the wind continues, the ripples will build up, becoming higher and higher. But if the air is calm, the water is calm. Waves are the water responding to the wind. But they are temporary and don’t affect the ocean. When the wind stops, the waves stop.
“The winds of life can disturb my surface and make emotional ripples and waves. It is crucial that I understand that I am still the ocean underneath, regardless of the tumult on the surface. My emotions are feelings; they are not me.
“Currents—we don’t see them, but they are strong and durable; they are not affected by the winds and waves; they flow regardless of the surface weather. Tides cause some currents, bending around islands and harbours of life. El Nino or the Gulf Stream, major currents, are more permanent and don’t depend on tides. They are major parts of the ocean ecosystem. Those are my thoughts; my thoughts are strong currents in my life.”
“What about tides?” I asked.
“Ahhh, tides. They are powerful, but you only see the results. You cannot see a tide, but you can see the beach grow wider as the tide retreats. They are the strongest and most regular force in the ocean. Tides are my attitudes and perceptions. They are slow and deep, so I never notice them. Once in a while, I see that the tide is in; the world is out to get me. Then later, I notice that the tide is out, and I have some peace in my life.
“And tides, which are created by the moon’s gravitational force, are like my attitudes and perceptions, which are governed by my conscious awareness of my Higher Power.
“When the moon is close to the earth, the tides are large, and when it is far away, the tides are weaker. My spiritual life, attitudes, and perceptions change with my Higher Power proximity and awareness.
“The psychic change that Carl Jung described was enormous, like moving the orbit of the moon circling the earth. We need to change the tides. That changes the currents. Waves, they still come and go.
“We needed a major change in our invisible influencers for our drinking and other problems, our instincts. We needed to move the moon; to have a deeper awareness of our Higher Power.”
We were silent again.
I thought to myself, “I am going to find someone less complicated to sit with.”
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My thoughts are thus is all the nothing in a paradox or chain reaction caused by the emotion of loneliness. From that’ All things being created to subdue the emotion, distraction a dream and we the players that dream are company for the dreamer God
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What a great comment, thanks.