a different type of freedom

One of my favorite ideas is the idea that...

"All roads are connected."

For the most part, if you live in the continental U.S., Canada, Mexico, or even South America...

You and I are connected by a series of roads.

Theoretically, we could reach one another just by getting in a car and driving.

Now, obviously this doesn't hold true in ALL cases.

I have a friend who recently visited someone in Alaska, and the only way to get to this someone's house was by boat.

But nonetheless, I love the idea that we're all a little more connected than it might initially seem.

I think books, poems, short stories -- basically, pieces of writing -- are similar to this.

Not all of them are connected. But many pieces of writing reference other pieces of writing.

For example, I recently read a short story by Stephen King called "The Life of Chuck."

In that story, King mentions the Walt Whitman poem:

"Song of Myself"

The specific phrase King brings up from the poem is:

"I am large, I contain multitudes"

In the scene I'm referencing, the main character, Chuck, is talking to his teacher about it...

And what it means to "contain multitudes."

His teacher places her palms over his temples and asks:

"What's in there between my hands?"

After Chuck gives his answer, she expands on it:

"Everything you see. Everything you know. The world, Chucky. Planes in the sky, manhole covers in the street. Every year you live, that world inside your head will get bigger and brighter, more detailed and complex. Do you understand?"

In America, today is Independence Day.

A day where we focus on freedom in the outer world.

But many of us -- myself included -- often completely ignore the idea of freedom when it comes to our inner world.

Are we prisoners of those inner worlds?

Or are we the ones running the show?

Because regardless of how it might feel sometimes, we DO have a choice.

If you feel like a prisoner in your own brain, one of the best ways I've found to "dig a tunnel" to freedom is...

Meditation.

I'll spare you the ranting and raving and just tell you this:

If you feel like you're in a mental or emotional prison right now...

Odds are, you accidentally built that prison yourself.

Which might sound a bit depressing. But it's actually a good thing.

Because if you built it...

You can tear it down.

Meditation can help you dismantle that prison, brick-by-brick.

If you're interested, check out one of the meditation apps in the app store.

I use 10% Happier now. But I started with Headspace, and it completely changed my life.

If you're in America -- Happy 4th of July.

Enjoy your freedom. It's one of the best things we have.