Every day, I hear people using the word “energy” in their speech, in many different contexts.
“He has such dark energy.”
“Green energy is the future of stainability.”
“I love the pure energy of five-year-olds.”
“It takes too much energy to cook every day.”
“Coffee gives me energy.”
“She drained my energy.”
“Stay away from that energy vampire!”
“That beautiful music raised my energy.”
We can look at the concept from three different perspectives—as scientists, philosophers, and artists. We need this kind of holistic approach to avoid limiting ourselves, staying open to view energy as a force, an inspiration, and a kind of creative and emotional current. When you look at small children, you can see how they embody all three types of energy: They are curious and they love exploring their environment with their minds and all their senses. One day, my five-year-old daughter asked, “Do cats cry with tears?” She was wondering about cat physiology, emotions, and aesthetics.
But how do we measure energy? Physicists, who are scientists that study force and motion, say energy is the ability to do work, and work is moving something against a force, like gravity. Energy can exist in a variety of forms, such as electrical, mechanical, chemical, thermal, or nuclear; can be transformed from one form to another; is measured in joules or watts.
Eventually, scientists began to recognize that everything in the Universe is made of energy. All physical reality is made up of vibrations of energy, even your thoughts are vibrations of it. While this sounds like a concept or theory, it is a new reality that quantum physics has revealed to us. Your thoughts have a powerful influence on your life.
If you lack enthusiasm and curiosity, you’re dormant, and not using energy as a philosopher would. We tend to fail ourselves, not psychologically or emotionally, but in logic and existential understanding, if we neglect or ignore this manifestation of energy in our lives.
Artists harness the energy of inspiration, which can come in many forms—the moving train, the birds chirping outside the window, the light in the Sedona mountains. They’re sensitive to subtle energies, drawing upon them to create something new and different.
So how does all this relate to us as regular people, as matter and as bodies?
We cannot forget about the energy in foods, concrete energy, energy that can be stored as fat and make us feel sluggish if we eat too much. The same goes with energy as thoughts that are negative—we’ll end up being depressed and hopeless, and skip our workout. The sensitive person may feel drained by others and then turn to food to replenish themselves, to give themselves “energy.”
What’s the solution for monitoring and sustaining energy in a way that supports us and makes feel alive and happy? The scientist will always perform the reality check, following the formula of The Happy Body and the food plan. The philosopher will bring awareness of our thoughts and feelings about our lives, other people, and maintain control whenever it’s possible. This part is stoic and takes charge of what can be changed, not wasting energy on what can’t. The artist in us will create and not necessarily paint, but invent a new dish in the kitchen or create harmony in the environment that gives satisfaction and peace. She will write a poem, pouring out her feelings instead of eating them.
I invite you to examine if all three ways of working with energy are present in you. If any are missing, what are some ideas to invite that perspective into your life?
Leave your response below in the comments.