Primal

I can't remember where I read or heard it, and I'm probably getting it all sorts of wrong by only having my memory as a resource, but here goes:

"A lion never thinks in terms of should."

A lion acts based upon primal instinct.

We make our way home to our husbands and our wives and we love our children.  And we want to make sure they are protected.  In the wild this instinct is understandable; when a lion can take down a giraffe, you best be on the lookout.  In the wilds of our imaginations there are so many feelings to sort through, we can't see the giraffe above the trees because we are too busy lying on the ground, writhing in the pain of worry masked as protection.   Each of us needs each other, maybe when we say we are protecting those we love we are actually protecting ourselves, feeding on our primal fear of being left alone.

But that's not entirely true.  When my children were born, I felt something primal inside of me that would have done anything, and still would, to ensure their safety, comfort and survival.  It was undeniable, I felt it in every pore of my body and, despite, feeling mentally drained, physically spent and utterly like a failure, I got up with them, held their hands while they fell asleep, fed them their favourite foods, and some not so favourite, cleaned their bodies, changed their sheets, and everything else that goes into being a mom.  And a dad.

Humans act on instinct way more than we give ourselves credit for.  Do we really need to ask ourselves why we are late for the twentieth time to the job we don't want to go to?  And yet we can't find our way to the job we were meant for because we are too busy mired in the muck of unhappiness.   A lion knows what he or she wants, there is no should.  A Zebra. A Giraffe. A Buffalo. The females of the pride work together and attack.  They don't always get their prey, but they know what they want and what they need and they go after it.  Sometimes they go hungry.  Every time they are true to themselves.  I'm not suggesting anyone quit their job, what I am suggesting is start finding your Zebra, fill out your pride, you may not always win, but you will find your way back to who you are.

Protection is an instinct.  The eco-systems we've built for our families for our lives, these keep us pushing for security.  Lions protect each other because they are wired that way.    Our desires are important and sometimes not so secure.  But, just as we want our children to flourish and our relationships to flourish, we need to flourish.  We need to dust ourselves off and take ourselves out of the desert and find water that makes us sparkle.  And if a Buffalo runs into our path, we don't need to worry, the lions have got it.

Sandra XXOO