Thursday 7 January 2010

The lure of the vestigial

A dash of the science into the post today. Vestigial organs are those whose presence in the body are merely the leftovers of the evolution process. They were used earlier when our body required them but in today's condition, these parts are no longer useful for any function. They are just there. And they make no difference if absent.

Well, the post is not about the vestigial organs in the body but something similar in our lives. Old memories, grandmother's dried flowers, ex's handkerchief, etc. Listing out things is not the predominant occupation but the affiliation with the so-called aspects that make no difference even if absent. Just as vestigial organs were vital once upon a time, it does not make any sense to hold these objects which are meant to be thrown away.

I can understand that memories are precious and certain objects are the imprints of someone who was/is a part of our life but to what extent? There are so many objects, emotions, people who clutter our lives and in the process drain the freshness from entering. Now I know that I am in the danger of sounding like a new-age guru who always talks about the 'freeing of clutter.' But then these vestigials need to be cleared. Of course they cannot be taken away from the body but one can atleast eliminate the vestigials around us.

I think our instincts and sixth-sense always identifies the vestigials. But the heart never allows these to be thrown out. An adamant heart overrules the head and accumulates clutter.

"Never again clutter your days or nights with so many menial and unimportant things that you have no time to accept a real challenge when it comes along. This applies to play as well as work. A day merely survived is no cause for celebration. You are not here to fritter away your precious hours when you have the ability to accomplish so much by making a slight change in your routine. No more busy work. No more hiding from success. Leave time, leave space, to grow. Now. Now! Not tomorrow!”
~ Og Mandino

23 comments:

  1. another beautifully meaningful message for us all - truer words never spoken - and i personally have found these words to be true in my own life - love your analogy! wonderfully written, susan!!! thank you so much for coming by my places - i always look forward to your visits!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Dear Jenean:

    I value your visits as well. So much clutter, so much negativity.

    Joy always.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Susan, honestly, I never realized the importance of freeing my system of clutter until I was in a situation where, if I didn't clear the trash, my life was going to turn into one huge dumping ground. I have since learned that this is something we need to do on a regular basis. There are so many things that happen to us every day. We are hit with so many stimuli, some of them intended for us, most of them coincidental. And naturally, we react to these stimuli, with feelings and actions now, and memories later. Our memories do affect how we will behave in the future. So if we don't keep things organized, clean, and mainly positive, there will definitely be no room for the new and up to enter.

    You always make me think too much with your compelling posts, Susan. But here I'm thinking about something good, rather than remembering something horrible that's leaving me feeling bitter and down. ;-)

    Nevine

    ReplyDelete
  4. Dear Nevine: Your comment was a fitting one to this post. Many times we gather so many things in the form of memories, stationery, etc and go crazy. Your comment is a good addition to this post.

    Thanks for your well-thought out comments.

    Joy always,
    Susan

    ReplyDelete
  5. Beautifully insightful as always.
    Yes indeed, we tend to hold on to clutter, in our hearts and soul, as well as in our lives. I like to believe that when the time is right, we let go. Like a safety net that is no longer needed, we clean out the corners and let in light.;)
    xoxoxo
    Zuzana

    ReplyDelete
  6. Thanks dear Zuzana. I always look forward to your comments. They enliven my posts.

    Joy always.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Lerring go is such a difficult thing for make.We clutch on to unwanted things that when an opportunity presents itself our hands are full.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Govind, so well-said. I guess we all say it and know it but don't DO it.

    Joy always.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Oh yes madam! That bloody clutter... guilt is to me the biggest vestigial of all and a few many things in the house and those body hairs ... (he he)

    SO true...
    Hey I love you are a new age guru... I mean, that's good- Ok to me!
    :)s

    ReplyDelete
  10. Partly because we think it will be important at some later stage, the clutter just increases, no room and it is stuffed in... even feelings.... the relief when that lid is opened ahaaaaa

    We need that space everywhere... to spread and grow... otherwise we will be bonzaied

    :)))

    ReplyDelete
  11. This is a good post, it reminds me of the preoccupation we have with excess baggage (anxieties, hurts) that we love to cart around in our heads and hearts, totally unecessary weight.

    BM

    ReplyDelete
  12. Susan.. I love you! How do you come up with such beautiful thoughts.. ?? First, I little unsure about how this post was going to proceed. I was thrilled by how the post ended. Vestigial things.. I sure do have many too. Time to get rid of them.

    Thank you for posting this.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Dulce: Sweet one, body hair is not a great problem as compared to guilt. So clean the system NOW.

    Ashes: Missed you. Thanks for coming by. Love always.

    Being Me: Yes dear one, we need to check our system every now and then. Unnecessary and useless.

    XoXoXo.

    Sameera: I love you back. Thanks for the kind words. You give them to me always. Get rid of your vestigials immediately.

    Joy always.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Susan, what a coincidence. I just left my blog with a post about the exact clutter I've been trying to get rid of. I am breaking away from 'routine' and developing a more 'productive routine', so that it does not while away my hours. Thank you for sharing. Bless you dear.

    ReplyDelete
  15. true words. although I tend to hold on to memories, but they don't clutter my mind. I set them free on paper.
    as for objects, it wasn't until I visited Uganda, that I understood that all those objects I so dearly hang on to are useless, and they their sole purpose is to stand in my way. Right after I got back from the heart of Africa, I donated lots and lots of objects and clothes to people who actually need them. It was truly an act of freeing myself from the confines of the material things.
    Going back to memories - I learned to let go of the negative ones and hang on to the good ones. It was not easy, but once I realized I was making room for new memories, it was easy.
    hugs,
    khulud

    ReplyDelete
  16. :) Beautiful analogy ....interesting perspective indeed..I guess only when you get out the old would you be able to bring in the new...Reading Go Kiss the world by Subroto Bagchi in which he says "Water in a pool is stagnant ...only when it flows is it energized" so I guess change in all its 'applied meanings' is good.

    ReplyDelete
  17. Dear Gaia: Glad to have you come by. I read yours as well. They say "Wise people think alike." Ahem Ahem. Blessings to you as well.

    Dear Khulud: Thanks for the kind words. We all deserve to be free of clutter.

    Dear Gauri: Thanks for coming by my place. Glad that you have chosen to comment. Thanks for the lovely comment. The title of the book sounds very interesting. True when he says, that flowing energises the water. It holds good for everything be it thoughts, goods, love, everything.

    Joy always.

    ReplyDelete
  18. Susan, you are the type of person whom I would like to strike up a conversation with, in a coffee shop, with absolutely no care for time.

    I would in this situation, mostly ask questions and remain quiet for the remainder of the time.

    Your mind is beautiful.

    ReplyDelete
  19. Dear Claire:

    How nice of you to say that. Thanks for the lovely words. I will remember that. Glad that you came by.

    Looking forward to seeing more of you.

    Joy always,
    Susan

    ReplyDelete
  20. I've always had the sense that I want to be able to pack up and move at a moment's notice, yet the clutter in my life continues to build. A good reminder to take care of both the physical and the emotional clutter that is keeping me from the space to grow, to truly embrace the day. Great post and great quote - "A day merely survived is no cause for celebration." Glad to have found your blog.

    ReplyDelete
  21. In a way it is comforting to think that the clutter in my head might actually be an extension of my tendency to hold on to things in my physical environment as well.

    My favorite way to eliminate mental clutter: go outside and drink tea :)

    ReplyDelete
  22. Dear Rebecca: Thanks for coming by. Hmmm. Rightly said that we just cannot leave as there is so much clutter preventing us all the time.

    Glad that you commented. Come by as often.

    LLB: Thanks for dropping by my place. I value your visit. Drinking tea works for many I guess. But then one comes back to clutter. Maybe another tea then.

    Joy always.

    ReplyDelete
  23. Symbols of the Holy Spirit

    The Holy Spirit is frequently referred to by metaphor and symbol, both doctrinally and biblically.

    Theologically speaking these symbols are a key to understanding of the Holy Spirit and his actions, and are not mere artistic representations.

    - signifies the Holy Spirit's action in Baptism, such that in the manner that "by one Spirit [believers] were all baptized", so they are "made to drink of one Spirit". (1 Corinthians 12:13)

    Thus the Spirit is also personally the living water welling up from Christ crucified (John 19:34; 1 John 5:8) as its source and welling up in Christians to eternal life.

    Anointing - The symbolism of anointing with oil also signifies the Holy Spirit, to the point of becoming a synonym for the Holy Spirit.

    The coming of the Spirit is referred to as his "anointing". (Cf. 1 John 2:20,27; 2 Corinthians 1:21)

    In some denominations anointing is practiced in Confirmation; ("chrismation" in the Eastern Churches).

    Its full force can be grasped only in relation to the primary anointing accomplished by the Holy Spirit, that of Jesus.

    Christ (in Hebrew, messiah) means the one "anointed" by God's Spirit.

    Fire - symbolizes the transforming energy of the Holy Spirit's actions. In the form of tongues "as of fire", the Holy Spirit rested on the disciples on the morning of Pentecost.

    Cloud and light - The Spirit comes upon the Virgin Mary and "overshadows" her, so that she might conceive and give birth to Jesus.

    On the mountain of transfiguration, the Spirit in the "cloud came and overshadowed" Jesus, Moses and Elijah, Peter, James and John, and "a voice came out of the cloud, saying, 'This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!'" (Luke 9:34-35)[11]

    The dove. When Christ comes up from the water of his baptism, the Holy Spirit, in the form of a dove, comes down upon him and remains with him. (Matthew 3:16)

    Wind The Spirit is likened to the "wind that blows where it will" (John 3:8), and described as "a sound from heaven like the rush of a mighty wind" (Acts 2:2-4).[10]

    There's more..

    ReplyDelete

LinkWithin

Related Posts with Thumbnails