Thursday 29 January 2015

Going with the Flow vs. Being in the Flow


You’ve heard the expression, go with the flow. It’s been used in countless situations by motivational speakers, counsellors, life coaches, teachers, even just friends and family.

The intention behind go with the flow is usually to encourage individuals to show less resistance to the circumstances and direction of their life. It’s in the same vein as don’t rock the boat, and don’t worry about the things you cannot change; don’t worry about the things you can

There’s a kind of hurried passivity to going with the flow which reminds us of the rat race and rush hour.  Everyone is in a hurry to get somewhere, but limited to the flow of the traffic. Everyone is in their own little world, wanting to be anywhere but where they are, push/pulled forward by the inevitability of the “big machine”—or, for a more organic metaphor, the enormous lumbering amoeba. 

Video: Tokyo time lapse in rush hour; Published by  Flow Bo

Cog in the wheel, ant in the hive, there is something about going with the flow which says follow the crowd, to us…be at one with the mob.  To go with the flow is a kind of surrender of oneself, but a surrender to circumstances and the status quo.

Going with the flow strikes us a kind of unconscious activity. A “shrug your shoulders and give up” type of response to the “inevitability of life.” Get up, go to work, come home, watch TV, go to sleep. That is a flow, alright…and it’s a flow many certainly go with. But it’s not exactly one anyone wants to be in. So, we tune out. And therein lies the crux of the problem with going with the flow.

Going with the flow leads to a kind of psychological and spiritual stagnation. A dead leaf blown haphazard on the wind…no longer connected to any real purpose. Just going, going, gone.

When you go with the flow, you are never really being in the flow.

One can be very much in the flow and yet not just going with it. To be, present, here and now, conscious, awake, alive…whether one is standing still and observing an ocean of people pass by during rush hour, or walking together very much in sync with them.

Being in the flow of life is the difference between the dead leaf which floats downstream, and the otter which is one with the river, no matter sunning himself on a rock or playfully shooting the rapids. The leaf goes with the flow. The otter is being one with the flow.

And it’s amazing what an experience one can have when one joins in being one with the flow of the moment especially if there’s actually an otter involved!)…

Video: Swimming with river otter in the Chagres River Panama; Published by chattaba

PeapodLife high-order rainforest ecosystems help remind us to be in the flow. Our ecosystems are in constant motion, evolving, responding to you, your moods, your life. That’s because our ecosystems are being in the flow of your life, constantly balancing themselves and by extension, you.

Being in the company of an ecosystem, being one with its flow, can profoundly affect your ability to be in the flow of your life. Now, we’re not saying you’re going to have experiences like playing with an otter, but you’d be surprised just how profound an effect an ecosystem can have on you.

This recently completed Living Wall Rainforest EcoSystem was installed at 235 Fitch Street in Welland, Ontario. 
Like most PeapodLife EcoSystems, it features orchids, moss, bromeliads, African violets, cacti, aquatic plants, fish & more. 
Like all PeapodLife EcoSystems, there is no soil, chemical additives or fertilizers of any kind.
Published by PeapodLife



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