Being comfortable with being uncomfortable

Arianna Huffington's call for "Hope 2.0" in this HuffPost article comes in the wake of her realization that "elected officials are not going to save us" and "that change is going to have to come from outside Washington."

She continues, "One year ago, Hope was about crossing our fingers and electing leaders that we thought would enact real change. Hope 2.0 is about using the lessons of Dr. King to create the conditions that give them no choice."

Why are there even such discussions going on as of late and why are terms like 'revolution' and 'tea party' being bandied about, not to mention the surge in populist anger?

Pluto is in Capricorn and it has a big job to do: to cleanse the toxicity that has infected our official institutions, as well as the consciousness that created it in the first place. Pluto entered Capricorn in November, 2008—the economy would collapse a month later. The last time Pluto was in this sign, was ... wait for it, during the time of the American Revolution (November, 1762 to December, 1778).

Isn't that amazing? There is no question that history is repeating itself to complete some unfinished business.

The change that Huffington advocates, namely, the people (us) forming a grassroots movement to force our leaders to change, is of course the solution and was what the American revolutionaries did to declare independence from tyrannical British rule. Like anything, it's easier said than done.

Henry Ford said that "people deserve the government they get." It is a fearful and fragmented population to blame when it allows the leaders of this Great Union to commit wholly un-American atrocities in the name of American values.

For those that are interested in change, I wouldn't encourage you to grab a megaphone, start a rally or protest, or anything of the sort. We have plenty of that already, without results. What I would suggest is something different, something internal: to start being comfortable with being uncomfortable, to start facing those areas in your life where you are fearful because it is your fear multiplied by everybody else's that has created the power structure alive today.

What do you hide from in your life? What conversation are you avoiding? What do you know you need to change but never do because you're too afraid to do anything about it? What risk do you fear taking? Who do you give your power away to? What are you afraid of?

Take 10-15 minutes, sit down, think it through, and make a list. Don't analyze or answer these exact questions, just start writing. Discovering and acknowledging what makes you afraid can be a catalyst to begin a process of change. If you are feeling bold, commit to actually doing the things you wrote down. It's a start.

This all boils down to your relationship with the present moment and how OK you are with it. Whatever it is that made your list, in some way, will necessitate you entering the present moment where you have no control and perhaps risk failing, looking stupid, getting rejected, etc.

If we can get comfortable with being uncomfortable (read get present), it will be that much easier to have meaningful dialogue with one another, to unite as a people, and to transform a power structure that would have us continue to be afraid, acquiescent, and fragmented.