What Is In Our Control

The more I think about it, the more I realize we have less control than I initially thought.  We can control our actions, nothing more.  But do we have absolute control over our actions?  I think our bodies operate on autopilot so much more than we realize.  For instance, small talk.  My body speaks the words necessary to maintain a pleasant status quo.  But I was speaking the words – should I have set my true self in control?  Maybe it only engages when it really matters.  It is unnecessary to let the spirit be in control over every single one of our actions – a lot of things are simply needed only for our survival in this human body.  Perhaps a better way to think about it is this: upon reflection of a “small-talk conversation,” I can choose (act) if the words spoken by me or the other individual impact my well-being.  So don’t get all bent out of shape that a lot or even most of your actions were not committed with the express authority of your spirit.  Think of it this way: our bodies are physical and operate within a physical world.  99.9% of our actions are our bodies simply automatically maintaining the status quo from both a survival and societal standpoint.  Why, then, would you relinquish power to your spirit, a non-physical entity to micromanage the natural, physical, automatic actions of the body?  Upon reflection, however, we often think about conversations we had or actions we subconsciously made and thought, “Ah, I could’ve done better.”  No.  That is simply the ideals of your spirit clashing with the ideals of your body.  You’re still alive, aren't you?Ok, your body is doing just fine.  And on those occasions when the spirit needs to be in control – it’ll be obvious.  Then, let philosophy guide your actions.  And…to bring this all back…that is why I say we have even less control than we realize.  Even our very actions, most of them are controlled by the body, not the spirit.  And I don’t despair at this…I rejoice!  The things we can control and, thus, the things we should commit great energy to have shrunk immensely!  From “all actions” to just “actions of the spirit.”