Sweet Teeth and Slavery

Article 15/365 of Jacques’s daily writing quest.

Did you know that the average Dutch burgher in the day had shares in a *slave stock exchange? 

And that’s all because the Europeans of the time found their sweet tooth and needed it satiated with cake, pastry, chocolate, and rum. The need for sugar exploded.

Europeans weren’t tough enough to withstand the rigours of working in the Caribbean sugar canes. So, hundreds of thousands of enslaved men, women and children were shipped from Africa to the Caribbean.

Sugar is responsible for the ruin of millions of lives, then and now.

Countless people have died from obesity and diabetes related death as a consequence of humanity’s abnormally high consumption of sugar. 

Its effects are insidious and devastating.

Words, thoughts and deeds are like sugar. Insidious and devastating. Infrequently, they give us a wonderful rush. But mostly, they imprison us in a life of slavery.

I’ve been doing an exercise over the last month to become aware of how many negative thoughts and words I have a day.

It’s mind-numbingly appalling. If you believe that words, thoughts and deeds manufacture your world, as I do, then standing sentinel over our words is the most important thing we can do, when it comes to manifesting the life we want.

If I spoke to my friends and family like I spoke to myself, I’d be alone, that’s for sure.

Every time I speak words of blame and complain about ‘what is being done to me’ by powers outside my control, I dive straight into victim mode. Nothing of positive consequence can be created from there. 

The good news, according to the late David R. Hawkins in Power Vs Force, one positive word and thought can negate all the negative ones. And, many arcane spiritual texts speak to this. 

I find that a bit of a stretch, perhaps in the moment, that is true. Of course, it makes sense that if our lives are made up of seconds, then every second spent in positive word, thought and deed is a good thing, isn’t it? 

So, how do we pull it off? It is clear to me that we have to move from the unconscious to the conscious. We need to practise recognising when we are in victim mode? How do you know that you’re in victim mode? That’s easy; every time you feel shame, apathy, guilt and grief. These create the emotional states of humiliation, blame, despair and regret.

The more I notice my negative thoughts and words and bring them into the harsh light of truth, the more I can destroy them. Like a vampire in sunlight. Nothing can beat truth.

I avoid judging my negative thoughts and words because doing so can cause me to spiral into more blame and criticism, which goes against the purpose of the exercise. I observe my negativity with a sense of curiosity, and I say, “Mmm, that’s interesting. Thank you for teaching me.I release you with love.” 

Is it working for me? I feel that it is. 

Is it easy? Not really, I’m repatterning, unlearning and releasing a lifetime (lifetimes) of negative programming. It’s a practice and a process. I am doing the best I can with what I have.

Engaging with and transforming my mind, heart, and soul will help me move from being controlled to being in control, from slavery to mastery, and from being a victim to being victorious.  

* Read the fascinating book, Sapiens. A Brief History of Humankind.