They say a dog is man’s best friend. That’s probably because in many ways there is a part of us that is not dissimilar to a dog. There is you and your dog inside of you. There is a higher version of yourself which is more evolved than your dog, and there is that base part of you and your dog inside.
For the moment, let’s refer to the dog part of you as Lassie. Lassie, not unlike other animals, is more concerned with being content and avoiding pain. Desiring the basic necessities of life such as food and shelter, mating and forming relationships with others.
Lassie has a natural tendency to want to care for others, and have fun, but can also experience overwhelming feelings, especially if the dog inside of you has suffered some abuse in the past. Lassie can be cuddly one minute, and in a second, when triggered, can be defensive and fierce, or turn and run away from anything which perceptually might cause harm.
Then there is that more intellectually evolved thinking part of you which is very imaginatively creative with the ability to be compassionate, reason, analyze, deduce, dream, project, and interact with others using language and higher levels of communication. Let’s call this part of you, Charlie.
Being inside the same body, Lassie and Charlie can face many challenges in trying to navigate life both as you and the dog inside of you.
Lassie is highly adaptive and is prone to change when faced with new circumstances in an effort to “get along” while Charlie will over-analyze just about anything, and lugs around an incredible (almost never-ending) filing system which hinders our ability to move on.
Lassie can easily sleep soundly when it is time to rest, while Charlie can stay up all night wondering, “What could happen if…” imagining and running all types of scenarios through the mind, creating new ideas, and fictitious threats and dangerous situations which have no relevancy in real life.
Charlie’s ability to be imaginative and creative is a gift which leads to problem-solving, miraculous inventions and advances in the sciences, but in concert with Lassie can cause us to become overwhelmed by emotional fear, which is a slippery slope when we exercise a good portion of Charlie’s skills in fear, leading to fear, anxiety, and depression.
This can create a virtual never-ending cycle of anxiety which can drain the resources of our entire biological system, weakening our immune system, making us more susceptible to disease, premature aging, and leading us to an early grave.
Thankfully, there is an even higher version of our selves which lives off-campus. Let’s call this part of us, Skyler.
Connecting with Skyler can help to keep Charlie from being over-powered by an overactive Lassie. Since Skyler is outside of your body, by adopting this point of view you can see a perspective of any given situation outside of yourself. From this vantage point you can be more objective and less judgmental.
Skyler can be the mediator between Charlie and Lassie enabling you to achieve your highest and best.
Mindfulness comes from Skyler and meditating allows us to be more connected with that higher part of our selves. This can allow you to live a better life, your best life, and make the world a better place for you and your dog inside of you.