Memoirs of a Masseur – November 2019

Alone is the place to be. Almost an extinct location now it juxtaposes the benefits and value of being present versus real time knowledge. Once, not so long ago, alone was much easier to come by. Simply by leaving our home, taking a drive, or turning off our computers we were free to have the sanctity and knowledge that being alone provides. Tech and social media has bullied “alone” away by bringing the ease of the web, and literally all forms of communication, to the palm of our hand with just a few clicks or swipes. It has infiltrated social abilities, head space, and our very humanity twisting human kind into zombie-like imprisoned souls. Take a good look around the next time you are in public domain and take notice of who is and who isn’t in the precious present. Simply finding an hour or two of freedom in each twenty-four hour day is an almost impossible task for most. When an individual habitually begins and ends their days with a device it is an addiction. The illusion and “fix” being that it is literally necessary to attempt to know what the world is doing or saying. This self-enslavement is insurmountable for the weak minded of this world. The dismal fact is that cell phones are the master and the wisdom of alone time is being drowned out of existence.

Truly despairing to me is the plethora of innate wisdom, knowledge, and direction (inherent in every human) that is being wasted and left untapped by the uncomfortable urge when one does not have their device. The feeling of missing out by not being “plugged in” are quite often anxiety inducing and self-destructive and running rampant in younger generations specifically. True alone time is an internal renewable resource that contains the answers to create happiness, to find peace of mind, and to help shape and achieve dreams beyond our wildest fantasies. Alone time has the script for the performance of a lifetime that we can act on. True isolation and silence within the soul neutralizes angst, nervousness, and depression. I promise that our destiny will not be found on our I-phone. Right now is the time as most of us reading this are in Costa Rica. What an awesome location to leave the phone behind and just go….go be alone. 2020 is just a month or two away but we can make a resolution right now. One to commit to being alone more often because we know we will be better to everyone around us because of it. We will have higher quality time, more innate direction, and we won’t be confused by all the BS on social media. Start with an hour today and play it through and refuse the temptation of thinking your job, your family, or some other “responsibility” will force you into cyber world. I am emphatic about this point. You the reader will be a better person to everyone you love if you frequently harvest alone time for yourself.

So go on…walk or run or swim or garden or stare at a tree or the ocean alone (no, you don’t need a selfie). Feel what freedom tastes like again by not being tethered to a weighty phone. Do you remember being a child and the awesome elation of timeless play? We can do that as an adult but not with our stupid cell phones screaming out for us. Day by day we do have the ability to value our mind space and liberate to defeat tech from our core. The craft of making far-sighted choices – decisions that require long periods of deliberation, decisions whose consequences might last for years is a strangely under-appreciated skill. Alone time is so valued by some frantic people that they actually pay to be told to not talk and to exercise and/or meditate all at certain “retreats” I know of. Have you ever hiked alone for days on end? Have you ever gone on vacation by yourself? Have you ever fasted from food and phone and sat in stillness to see what may happen? Who needs a therapist, psychiatrist, or a hand full of pills to find temporary peace of mind when some simple isolation with a pen and paper can be the answer. I urge you to take a big step back and to try it. All the significant answers you may be looking for will bubble to the surface if you allow it. The modern forces around us are tremendous, resistance is more important than most of us homo sapiens (Latin for wise man) think. I urge you to un-plug, to re-learn the knowledge of the ages already inside of us.  There is enough time for everything. Remember to have confidence in that.

“What day is it?” – “It’s today,” squeaked Piglet

“My favorite day” – said Pooh

We are meant to be in the here and now and alone with ourselves because that is where the magic happens. I urge you to become the writers, rather than readers, of your own story.

(Todd Pequeen is a full time independent massage therapist here in Manuel Antonio and has been writing, massaging, surfing, and “living the life” for over twenty years here in Manuel Antonio. Contact him at 8830-7727, on WhatsApp, FB, or at [email protected]. He massages at his home studio or at your location.)