Real or plastic

This morning a picture of a china tea cup posted on Facebook jogged my memory about something I had written in my e-book, Journey of an Enlightened Egotist, still available on Amazon.com by the way. It reminded me not to settle for less than I deserve because we all deserve the very best the universe has to offer. The following is the quote from my book.

Many years ago my grandmother was examining the plastic dishes in my kitchen cupboard and commented, "You are old enough to use real dishes." I  have remembered this experience all of my life, but I should have paid more attention. She was really saying plastic was not good enough for me. Today some of my most treasured possessions are the cut glass dishes I inherited from her.

Recently while doing some research on the subject of ego vs soul I found an interesting analogy that again reminded me of the experience. The ego was referred to as a plastic flower and the soul as a real blooming flower capable of birth, death and rebirth.

According to the material the ego is outside of us and is formed by listening to and believing what others think of us. Over time this accumulation of garbage became ingrained in my mind and convinced me that it was the real me. It was an erroneous conclusion. 

My real center is my soul. It is my personal connection to my Creator and all things created. It makes me one with the universe and is the voice of the spirit within. Unlike the ego, the soul is eternal. Because of its pure source it is impossible for the soul mind to project negative thoughts and emotions. Negativity of any kind is always the product of the ego.

Allowing the ego to control my life caused my own misery. The ego commands, demands, promotes dependency, claims to know everything and seeks personal gratification. The soul mind informs, suggests, guides, encourages growth and recognizes a power higher than itself.

When I truly observed the wicked ways of the ego and began experiencing a soul centered life I laughed at the absurdity. Who in their right mind would consciously choose a life of misery over one of peace and love? We can only change what we can see.