Independence Day
A deeper look at what independence and freedom means in our individual lives.
Independence Day is a big holiday in the U.S. with parades, picnics, and fireworks. But let’s look deeper into what independence and freedom means for our individual lives. The hippie movement that originated in the US in the 1960’s and then spread throughout the western world was the result of young people declaring their independence from social archetypes, roles and established patterns of behavior. They declared their independence from the conformity of the 1950’s much in the same way that America’s founding fathers declared their independence from the British monarchy.
You can celebrate America’s Independence Day this year by declaring your independence from the patterns, attitudes, and behaviors that have become unseen habits. When you walk into a store, go to a restaurant, bank or post office, you may find yourself slipping into habitual social roles. And you, in turn, may be treated by a saleperson or waiter as the role of a customer. And so a range of conditioned patterns arise between human beings that determine the nature of that reaction that has nothing to do with authenticity. The more identified you are with your social roles, the less authentic you are in those relationships.
The mental images you hold of each other further disconnects you from an authentic interaction as the concepts you hold of another person are your creation and vice-versa for the person relating to you. With images making our interaction twice or thrice removed from reality, it’s no wonder there is so much conflict in relationships.
We can take our cue from the 4th of July, America’s Independence Day, and watch our social patterns of fakeness and declare ourselves ready to embrace authenticity by liberating ourselves from habits and behaviors that we see that we have outgrown and discard them for truer, more real interaction.
