Ace of Wands: Let's Get Activated!
(c) Cheryl Lynne Bradley 2004-7


Morgan Greer arot: Ace of WAnds

You have within you: The strength to overcome any obstacle that stands in your way; the courage to be true to yourself; the love to care for every living being; the wisdom to build a world without hunger, hatred, war, poverty, pollution or disease. You have within you the power to do what has never been done before. Author Unknown

He who shirks action does not attain freedom; no one can gain perfection by abstaining from work. Indeed, there is no one who rests for even an instant; every creature is driven to action by his own nature. Bhagavad Gita 3:4-5

Take a visit to a book store and you will see endless shelves of books on self help management. They run the gamut of growth, relationship and healing issues but the one thing they have in common is their desire to get us motivated. Motivational speaking is a big industry and motivational speakers are much in demand by individuals, professional athletes, sports teams and businesses oriented on sales, marketing and improving employee performance. I like what George Carlin has to say about motivational books - if you have it together enough to get to the bookstore to buy one, then you are already motivated.

According to Your Dictionary (http://www.yourdictionary.net/), the verb "activate" has 5 senses.
1. trip, actuate, trigger , activate, set off , spark off , spark , trigger off , touch off -- put in motion or move to act; "trigger a reaction"; "actuate the circuits"
2. activate -- make active or more active; "activate an old file"
3. activate -- make more absorptive; of metals
4. activate, aerate -- aerate (sewage) so as to favor the growth of organisms that decompose organic matter
5. activate -- make (substances) radioactive

The verb "motivate" has 1 sense.
1. motivate, actuate , propel , move , prompt , incite -- give an incentive for action; "This moved me to sacrifice my career" .

With so much emphasis on getting motivated, we very rarely look at getting activated. Motivation is necessary for a conscious intention to take action but in order for an action to occur, we have to put it in motion - we physically have to make some kind of movement or change. I want to quit smoking (yet again). I often joke that I follow the true psychic diet: coffee, cigarettes and candy. I have lots of incentives to quit, and all of them are compelling, but until I decide that I am going to act on them, I am still a smoker. The only spark I'm lighting is the one to fire up my next cigarette.

Activation often hinges on recognizing a potential for change or improvement that we are not yet consciously aware of, or, it requires a change around an area that is too emotionally burdened to be viewed objectively. Aware or not, whatever the problem or issue is, it is an active force in our life and as an active force, it has impact. In order to get positively activated we have to be willing to make changes and try new methods. What is happening in our day to day lives right now, at this very moment, good or bad, is what is activated.

Stressors in people create emotional arousal because stress is an active force too. Depending on the type, intensity, and duration of the stressor and on our own personal and social resources, stressful situations can provoke emotional and physical disturbances like depression and learned helplessness. Our self-motivation is reduced so there is no incentive to try new coping strategies. We can't learn new coping strategies because we can't overcome events of the past that we had no control over but that had great emotional impact on us. It is a vicious circle.

We don't have control over everything that happens in our lives, but we can control the way we react to what happens to us. We have to have some insight into what we would like to actively manifest in our lives - we need to search our souls, interrogate ourselves and do some introspective thinking. This can be a very difficult process as it makes us look at why we are reluctant to accept the challenge and potential reward of new opportunities or why access to opportunities for change or progress elude us. We have to be willing to look at our problems, upsets and difficulties to find a source for our apparent inability to achieve desired outcomes. We then have to make decision to move forward and we need to start practicing our new activated approach.

Wisdom is always gained from experience and from the ongoing struggle to be patient and to persevere. Activation requires a courageous mind and a determined will. The forces we are seeking to activate are the forces which will create our future world. The most important aspect of getting activated is taking the first step - we must begin.......

Higher Self Tarot Layout (c) Cheryl Lynne Bradley 2004

 




This page was updated on 2007-5-14.