What Do You Think About When You Wake Up And What Do You Wake Up For?

[Saarah]

Not the snappiest of titles but anyway I'd just like to know, when you wake up in the morning, do you have a drive to do anything in particular, what is it that fills you with meaning to get up? I'm not necessarily talking about life purpose, just about your enjoyment for living. Like when a kid wakes up and thinks about that little project of building something out of their toys because they decided it was a fun thing to do today. 

Most of the time in my life I never questioned existence, waking up was about doing 'stuff' and that stuff was meaningful to me because I didn't know anything more.

Now I've learnt about all this deeper stuff about humans existentially and how all the success we strive for like living a rich life is absolutely meaningless in the bigger sense of life. So now when I wake up I think about how everything I'm about to do in my day holds no inherent meaning. It's just stuff for stuff's sake. Especially since becoming atheist i understand that life is a process and its not about a goal.

Before, I could get lost in the process of life but now it's always on my mind.

P.S. I'm not depressed, I have plenty of energy and love for life, but it's all inside me and I'm confused as to what I'm supposed to be directing it at and why

[charlie2dogs]

8 minutes ago, Saarah said:

Not the snappiest of titles but anyway I'd just like to know, when you wake up in the morning, do you have a drive to do anything in particular, what is it that fills you with meaning to get up? I'm not necessarily talking about life purpose, just about your enjoyment for living. Like when a kid wakes up and thinks about that little project of building something out of their toys because they decided it was a fun thing to do today. 

Most of the time in my life I never questioned existence, waking up was about doing 'stuff' and that stuff was meaningful to me because I didn't know anything more.

Now I've learnt about all this deeper stuff about humans existentially and how all the success we strive for like living a rich life is absolutely meaningless in the bigger sense of life. So now when I wake up I think about how everything I'm about to do in my day holds no inherent meaning. It's just stuff for stuff's sake. Especially since becoming atheist i understand that life is a process and its not about a goal.

Before, I could get lost in the process of life but now it's always on my mind.

P.S. I'm not depressed, I have plenty of energy and love for life, but it's all inside me and I'm confused as to what I'm supposed to be directing it at and why

Enjoy the space of this, be patient, something will arise, that will draw your attention to it, just enjoy the space of your own beingness until it does. There is no supposed to be,  the real you inside will take good care of you, allow it to live you instead of the identity.  i dont call myself and atheist , but what i say is im not a believer, that means i dont believe anything, it is either living experience or its belief, belief has nothing to do with experience, understanding or knowledge. The source of life is within you.

[Ajax]

First thing I think about  when I get up... it is either:

"I gotta pee.." or " Why the hell does someone always have to be in the bathroom when I gotta pee!"

 

Actually I think you are missing out on the beauty in the fact that life has no purpose... Imagine life as an empty canvas and you as a painter. With a vision in mind you can use certain techniques and strokes to paint a picture for yourself and others to enjoy. The secret is in realizing that Life is suppose to be fun!

The idea that you should buy into is that you are simply an artist that is there to create whatever it is that you wish to create.  If you are not having fun in life it is simply because are not creating your own design or you are not using the proper techniques to align your creation with your vision/purpose.

Take care,

My friend.

[Corte]

Every dawn right around sunset, I have around 3-5 dreams that I desperately try to catch up with. (While asleep) It feels like the world around me is going 100mph in every direction. It feels like I've been falling in and out of reality for days at a time. All I can do is observe while unaware of any time, space or physical phenomena. I wake up and try to remember all I just saw. Before opening my eyes I begin to contemplate all of the details I can remember from the place I found most fascinating, which usually takes me back after a few minutes. 

While all of this is happening, my body doesn't exist, the world doesn't exist. So many times I've woken up with a huge gasp for air and it feels like the most amazing thing in the world. I wake up to feel a breath fill up my mouth and lungs. Imagine someone holding you under water, drowning you, until the last second before you die, when they pull you up in an instant and you breathe in again filling yourself back up with life. That's why I wake up in the morning. To feel the beat of my heart, the warmth of my body. To look out the window and see what happened while I was gone. To feel how incredible the ache of hunger is. To bathe my body in cold water and feel it fill my warm stomach. I'm alive.

Edited May 1, 2016 by Corte

[Corte]

3 hours ago, Saarah said:

Especially since becoming atheist i understand that life is a process and its not about a goal.

I encourage you to keep studying atheism, for it is not the answer nor the end. It may give you more passion for life for a little while, but it is nothing more than another label. In my experience, atheism was a step for me to become more open minded and distance myself from traditional religion. It wasn't until I continued further that I found my true passion for this existence I describe above. 

[Nameless]

Saarah,

You wake up each morning...you have awakened.

 Where did you come from when you awoke this morning? Where were you in deep sleep? 

Unlearn all the conditioning of how to be happy. An unconditioned 5 year old child Inhabits bliss with a rubber spatula for hours. 

"Pee" as Ajax mentioned, question yourself as Corte has, charlie2dogs has offered help as well. 

Quiet the mind, the hair on your head doesn't require thoughts to grow. 

 

 

 

[Saarah]

@charlie2dogs Thank you, I think I need to stop thinking too hard about it and watch my actions each day, allow myself to be drawn to things and see how I enjoy it without thinking about the bigger purpose of it, maybe that'll help me understand life from the inside out instead of vice versa

 @Ajax This idea that life has no purpose is what made me feel so lost, because then I thought what's the point? I've tried to simply enjoy the experience but I'm finding it difficult, I think the key is there when you said I'm not creating my own design, maybe I need to unleash my inner artist more, perhaps I need to be more proactive instead of sitting here asking for some meaning to be handed to me, or the ability to create meaning handed to me. It is a habit of highly effective people to be proactive, so I need to strive to create meaning however, whenever, with whatever resonates with me. Thanks! 

@Corte Wow, that was very poetic indeed! I think that's what we also feel as children, not thinking about our societal duties, but just being with the body as it emerges from sleep and enjoying everything it has to offer that first moment. I've been struggling to find gratitude and appreciation for these little things, because I feel so rushed and worried in my mind, full of dread to face my responsibilities, I wish to cultivate that complete innocence of being. Would you say this was mindfulness, or some other attitude you carry everyday about life?

I guess regarding my atheism even though I understand post-rationalism for example there's perhaps another facet to explore in terms of the meaning of living 

@Nameless Thank you, i shall try to do this and get lost while being aware of the everyday! It's gonna be tough to quieten my mind 

 

[Man in the Mirror]

3 hours ago, Saarah said:

I've been struggling to find gratitude and appreciation for these little things, because I feel so rushed and worried in my mind, full of dread to face my responsibilities

Have you tried a 30-day gratitude journal exercise? I learned about this practice from one of Leo's videos. In the beginning, I journaled about a lot of the more obvious things to be grateful for, but as the days went on, my mind started to think more of all the little things that we don't always take the time to appreciate. This daily mental exercise strengthens your mind to become more aware of such things. I'm on day 29 now, and I am noticing a gradual shift that is happening in my mentality. Lately, it's easier to wake up with a smile on my face. i don't even need an alarm clock anymore. i am learning to be grateful to wake up and be here.