In my opinion, every little part of your life that helps you feel fulfilled, enlightened, proud, purposeful, and so on, is absolutely worth keeping in your life. Anything that improves your existence, even in the tiniest of ways, is worth it!
I have always been one of those (annoying) people who actually ENJOYS academia. I loved grade school, I loved University, and I STILL, to this day, absolutely LOVE researching and learning about new topics.
I have recently been writing for an online magazine that focuses on yoga as well as health & wellness. In my latest article (which is currently pending review), I chose to bring up a few topics:
- practicing meditation in every-day circumstances and situations
- the ability not only to understand someone's internal struggle, but to actually absorb those feelings and experience them as our own
- the benefits and negative effects of absorbing the feelings of others - especially when already suffering from chronic illness that can be severely affected by stress
- energy & Chakras, keeping your own body balanced, and differentiating between genuine feelings and those feelings you have absorbed from the atmosphere created by others.
For this article, I wanted to spend several hours extensively researching the above topics. After visiting various online sources, including definitions
and the differences in methods of practice, I was able to gain a better understanding about meditation.
Since being first introduced to the following youtube channel:
www.youtube.com/spiritscience
I have been increasingly fascinated by the study of Chakras, external energies, the connections between science and spirituality, as well as allowing me to focus on the connection within myself.
Not only was I able to find some incredibly intriguing information regarding the above topics, but physically partaking in the actual research was the most enjoyable. The actual act of learning has always been an activity that I truly love. The more that I learn, the more that I want to learn.
One of my favorite articles that I came across when researching meditation and empathy was written by a Holistic Health Practitioner and Professional Photographer - Tyler J. Herbert:
http://www.academia.edu/2611976/Empath_The_Extra-Sensitive_Being
Like many people, once I graduated from post-secondary education, my learning curve seemed to plateau. Without deadlines and pressure and daily educational stimulus, the amount of new information that I absorb has even steadily decreased! I love to read novels and I do focus on learning new music pretty consistently, but I miss daily education.
Writing for this particular e-magazine has not only encouraged me to improve my writing skills (in both English and French), but it has also motivated me to increase my knowledge base.
Writing these articles helps to give me purpose! It helps me feel fulfilled, enlightened, and purposeful.
Of course, with pages and pages worth of research, I was unable to include all of the information that I wanted to discuss - in 500 words or less.
It is vital, for me, to dedicate time and focus to continually learn. Learning has been a positive and fulfilling experience throughout my life, and I am grateful to have had the opportunity to learn on a continuous basis.
This latest endeavor has reminded me how important, and how satisfying, it is to strive to learn on a daily basis.