Finding What You're Looking For

What you're seeking won't be found if you keep looking in all the wrong places.

Grasshopper Notes are the writings from America's Best Known Hypnotherapist John Morgan. His podcasts contain his most responded to essays and blog posts from the past two decades. 

Find the written versions of these podcasts on John's podcasting site: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1628038

"The Grasshopper" is the part of you that whispers pearls of wisdom that  seem to pop into your mind from out of the blue. John's essays and blog posts are his interpretations of these "Nips of Nectar." Others have labeled his writings as timeless wisdom. 

Most of the John's writings revolve around self improvement and self help. They address topics like:

• Mindfulness
• Peace of mind
• Creativity
• How to stay in the present moment
• Spirituality
• Behavior improvement

And stories that transform you to a wider sense of awareness that presents more options. And isn't that what we all want, more options? 

John uploads these podcasts on a regular basis. So check back often to hear these podcasts heard around the world. Who wants to be the next person to change? 

Make sure to order a copy of John's new book: WISDOM OF THE GRASSHOPPER – 21 Days to Creativity. These mini-meditations take you inside where all your creative resources live. And you'll come out not only refreshed but recommitted to creating your future. 

It's only $16.95 and available at BLURB.COM at the link below. https://www.blurb.com/b/10239673-wisd...

Also, download John's FREE book INTER RUPTION: The Magic Key To Lasting Change. It's available at John's website  https://GrasshopperNotes.com

Transcript

Finding What You're Looking For

When I was a teenager, we went to swim at a place deep in the woods. It was a quarry filled with water. It had “Keep Out” signs posted, so that made it ideal for teenage boys.

We would swim in the water and take dives off the protruding rocks on the side. One of them was about 12 to 15 feet above water level and we could all handle jumping and diving from that height. Then we noticed there was another protruding rock way up above us. We determined it was 100 feet. It was probably more like 80, but it was high. We climbed up there and the dare was to dive from that height.

My friend, Bob went first and I went second. The other two walked back down without diving. They called us brave. As I look back on it with adult eyes, it was stupid. Some would call it adventure, testing your limits, but it was boys being boys.

It got me to wondering about men doing boy like things, and it dawned on me that it makes them feel young again. It’s like a Fountain of Youth. The only real difficulty I see is the loss of agility that men have when they contemplate doing boy things. Then The Grasshopper jumped in feet first and offered this:

“Men do these things because they are afraid of dying. Women do these things because they’re afraid of not living.”

I think The Grasshopper's on to something.

Here is some dialogue from the movie Moonstruck to underscore the male side of The Grasshopper’s observation.

Rose: Why do men chase women?

Johnny: Well, there’s a Bible story… God… God took a rib from Adam and made Eve. Now maybe men chase women to get the rib back. When God took the rib, he left a big hole there, where there used to be something. And the women have that. Now maybe, just maybe, a man isn’t complete as a man without a woman.

Rose: [frustrated] But why would a man need more than one woman?

Johnny: I don’t know. Maybe because he fears death.[Rose looks up, eyes wide, suspicions confirmed]

Rose: That’s it! That’s the reason!

Johnny: I don’t know…

Rose: No! That’s it! Thank you! Thank you for answering my question!

My sense is that many women fear mundane more than they do death. In their minds they more than likely have it equated with death. Now “mundane” is an elastic word meaning different things to different people, but in most cases it has the sense of being trapped and the scent of death.

Following this logic, the adventuresome side of a woman is peaked when they feel they aren’t living. Men may go climb Kilimanjaro to chase away the fear of death, but women will go looking for life – often in all the wrong places.

Both men and women look outside themselves for an answer that’s not there. When you come back from the African Safari, the fear is still there. When you come back from touring the wine fields in Tuscany, you are still feeling unfulfilled.

The life that both men and women are seeking is always available – just not in the cultural form you think. We've been conditioned to seek rather than find. Here's the conundrum: finding happens when seeking desists. When you put to rest the notion that what you're looking for is outside of yourself, you find the peace that you've been seeking. It’s always the case.

Yes, travel to all the points on the planet you can afford to visit. Have wonderful times, see wonderful things, and make indelible memories. Just don’t make the mistake of thinking “this is it” because you'll be disappointed time after time.

There is a great book written by Russell Conwell called Acres of Diamonds which was based on a speech he gave over 5000 times in the 1920s. The premise of the message is that there are diamonds present right where you are. You don't have to travel the world to seek them. Conwell was talking about financial treasures, but the same message is applicable to the treasure we all seek – peace of mind.

It comes when we do a little soul searching and find our own gem within.

Happy digging!

All the best,

John