EPIPHANY!!

Sometimes when I'm driving and go on auto-pilot I get completely lost in my thoughts.  That's one thing I love about driving- I'm not distracted by my phone, the Internet, or text messages- it's just me and the road, some good music, and my thoughts to keep me company.

While I was driving the other day, I had a totally epiphany about an aspect of myself and how I handle the relationships in my life.  This epiphany, which had to do with how I conduct my relationships (friendships, spouse, family, etc), made me realize the reason why I feel so drained when it comes to relationships and why I'm not close with some people I would love to be closer with.

After realizing my flaw, I saw that I could really consciously do something about it to improve my relationships and make myself and the other people in said relationships a lot more fulfilled and happy.  It was pretty satisfying to have this realization in itself, let alone be able to put it in play.  I've already seen an improvement in some of my relationships, which is incredible.

No matter how long we live, I think we'll always discover new things about us.   Sometimes it seems like the one person it is hardest for us to get to know is the one person we can never get away from: ourselves.

But I think it's not so much a matter of finding ourselves as it is a matter of defining ourselves.  What do we think is right?  What do we think is wrong?  What are we willing to do?  What are we not willing to do?

I love learning about myself and creating who I am.  It's an incredible feeling to be so happy with the person I am and know that I still have so much more learning and growing to do.  In my opinion, the people who think they know it all and have nothing more to gain from life are seriously missing out (unless, of course, they're old and have lived their lives, but still- my grandpa used to tell me that the first day you shouldn't learn something new should be the day after you die).  Closed minds don't get the benefit and joy that open minds do.  Closed minds seem to have trouble connecting to other people, to understanding things outside of their preexisting beliefs, and don't seem to gain as much joy from learning new things.

I also think that we can reduce so much stress, improve our relationships, and find a higher state of happiness when we give up the unquenchable desire to always be right.  No one knows everything, and we can learn something from every single person.  When we act like we know it all, we lose a lot of important parts of being human.  First off, we lose a lot of credibility with others if they see that we spew a lot of B.S. because then they have no idea when we say something that's actually accurate.  Second, we stop asking questions, and when we stop asking questions, our minds stop exploring.  There's nothing wrong with not knowing everything.  I mean, I think I know quite a bit about a lot of things, but what I know is barely even a frozen drop of water in the tip of the iceberg that is the knowledge of the universe.

Open minds also seem to be the most creative minds; probably because they're always searching and asking and trying to see things in a new way.  Like Danny- he loves his job, and has probably one of the most amazing and insightful minds I know.  He's been working on so many incredible projects, and I love hearing about them.  Sometimes I feel a little jealous that he gets to work in such a creative environment at the studio, because he comes home every day and talks about what he did with such enthusiasm.  He listens to everyone, and is never afraid to ask questions.  I aim to be more like him; he's my inspiration to improve who I am.