We all live overloaded lives since the advent of multiple communication platforms such as email, social networks and cell phones that seem to captivate some of us so dearly. More reachable than ever but more lonesome too. Let's say that the stress level has gone up a notch since they have become part of our lives while decreasing our level of attention. Everything seems to be done on the surface and to see people walking on the big arteries of our cities with their noses in their screen, one would think zombies are now part of the real world. It is sad in fact this level of global awareness, people embark on various movements because it is the fashion of the moment and "like" everything on their path to avoid missing the digital boat. It is in fact their lives that they are missing by living it through a screen through this narcissistic mirror that has no limits. All these incessant disturbances move us away from ourselves because, despite a form of loneliness mentioned above, it is difficult to find a space for you to be with you unless you pull the plug. It seems simple but depending on our reality and our obligations it is not always possible. For others it's downright addictive, a form of digital drug that calms the soul like a cigarette does for others.

We all (or almost all) question ourselves about our self-interest, our aspirations, our way of life and our place in this world, but these brief moments of lucidity are put to the test when we open ourselves to the outside world and we suffer the level of insignificance that prevails in our society through the different forms of media and the "talking heads" that represent us and what we are offered. To be clear I'm not saying that we are wall-to-wall in slush but what prevails are lies, insignificance and mass manipulation. They are only noise, illusions, empty words and shocking images to make us forget the system in which we live.

Many more eloquent people with a better vocabulary than mine have been calling for years for folks to wake up and come out of this mass torpor inflicted by the system but in the eyes of the population that often live like sheeps who are too frightened to step out of line and jump the fence, those who call for real change are seen as extremists, outsiders and lunatics. Prefering musical fast food rather than culture and a generic life limited to 140 characters (280 since Nov 7th), the comfort and the indifference which prevail today in the West is astonishing. What counts more than ever in the eyes of a large slice of society are “get rich quick” schemes and the instant stardom. The ME and the navel temple being larger than life displayed in empty selfies that sprinkles the social spectrum that envelopes us.

Admittedly this is a pessimistic view of the state of things and it is much easier not to think too mutch and to just go with the flow. So what are the markers of time in all this? It's the moments of lucidity that you live through an immense range of emotions, it's when you are touched by words, a human being or events. This is when you are fully aware of the importance of the beauty or ugliness of the present moment. It's when you're really there, stripped of your mask, "all in baby" ready to unveil yourself without artifice or defense. It's when you leave your ego at the door and you come to play and live the present moment man.

We mark the time and tattoo our minds with these moments so dear to our eyes that may seem ephemeral sometimes but that can only exist on our "time line" of life if we are fully aware and not hypnotize by this circus in which we live.

We are humans with imperfect willpower who repair our mistakes as we make others. It is not easy. It is clearly simpler to put the switch to off and go with the flow without asking too many questions but that is the problem. There are too many people on this ball of clay with the switch turned off and the problem usually lies at the source, the parents and the education received in a dry and meaningless environment resulting in human beings without empathy and finesse, without the desire to know or to surpass oneself. Laziness in all its forms is a common denominator.

Nothing I say will change much, optimists will say that life is beautiful, that people are filled with love and that everything changes for the better. Those in my humble opinion simply have not looked at life in the face.

It's crazy what can trot in your mind between the grocery store and the house, the arena being our sanctuary where reason is put in check by our passion for this sport which raises within us so much emotion. Markers of time or not we are privileged to be able to put real life on pause to meet each other and fully live this dream in a state of awakening as a fantasy that is realized each time our body crosses the threshold of this parallel world that is the arena. Where our wildest dreams can come true, where we really live. What is the real life? The one that feeds our thoughts or the one we live in everyday life and that we impose on ourselves? One being the dream and the other the nightmare, on which side do you lean?

It is on this series of observations and unanswered questions that I wish each of you a lot of lucidity, awareness and satisfaction in your everyday life. Especially that you may have in your lives a form of self-love as well as one that envelopes you with a freedom to act and the means to reach your goals. More than anything, I wish you and those you carry in your hearts health, because it is true that without it in the end we have absolutely nothing and I know what I'm talking about.

I wish you a happy new year! Here’s hoping that we make the right decisions and that we do the right things so that 2018 marks our lives with significance.

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JFD