The "Off" Switch

I had this particular topic in my head in November. I was all set to write about it but then I put it on the back burner. I even forgot about it because my life was going in a certain way and I think as the 2009 came to a close I was able to get a grasp of my emotions and my thoughts.

Last week I was having a conversation with someone and she mentioned to me that she wished there was an "off switch" for emotions. That perhaps there was away to turn off emotions when we needed to in order to get through the day or whatever situation. It made me think a lot about this. I had to dust off this subject in my head and really think about this. In fact, I went so far as to attempt a poem, I started it, but I never got back to it. I am not even sure I like it.

Anyway, the concept of the "off switch" was something that I thought about at a time when I was dealing with several different things at once. I am the type of person now that is willing and able to deal with my problems head on. I don't care for confrontation but I will do it because there are times in which it has to be done. I know my main problem is that I care about people's feelings too much. So, in the past, I have avoided confrontation or even being honest about things because of it. I have since come to realize that I need to put other people's feelings aside and just be real.

Let's be honest here. There are very few people in the world who are going to care about our feelings the way we want them to. There are people in this world who think that life is all about them and what we feel simply does not matter...until it is too late. It is that simple fact alone that should provoke any one of us to be real. We learn to be selfish based on the actions of others.

I feel the "off switch" is the hardening of our hearts. While it is not a real concept because emotions is what makes us human, it is something that can be achieved through maturity and practice. This way you can turn off certain feelings off like: regret, sorrow, or depression. Can you imagine if they had a pill for that? Wait...maybe they do.

It would be hot if you could choose which things you want to shut off. I think about it like an iPhone or a Blackberry app. You can download it and the set the preference. It would be something like this:

• Crying: Off
• Living In The Past: Off
• Sad Songs: Off
• Romantic Movies: Off
• Expectations: Off
• Facebook Stalking: Off
• Drunk Tweeting: Off

The point is that we struggle so much with our issues. Some people know how to deal with them and some people don't. I think the more mature a person is the easier it is to not do dumb things to themselves and other  people. Maybe that is me having faith in other people. Personally, I have learned to deal with things as they come. I have learned the less you care the happier you will be. That sounds like it makes no sense, but some how it is reality.

However, I would be foolish to say that having an "off switch" is the best thing to have because it isn't. This type of ability only limits ourselves and any real chance of happiness. I really think that true happiness comes from within and if we rely on people to make us happy then life will really be disappointing. We learn through pain and most humans are too stubborn not learn anything easily.

The only thing I would really create an "off switch" for, is fear. Too many people live their lives so scared of what might or might not happen that they forget to live.

Death is not the biggest fear we have; our biggest fear is taking the risk to be alive -- the risk to be alive and express what we really are. - Don Miguel Ruiz