I find myself thinking about life quite a bit these days. I also find myself comparing real life to certain aspects of virtual life and what we can learn from both.
I have, in so many words, been on a journey in my real life to find some semblance of peace and balance while making sense of the maelstrom of happenings that invade my peace of mind day to day.
I must admit at times I have been highly critical of Entropia Universe and the developers behind that virtual world, MindArk. I have found in my search for less stress and balance in my real life, I at times transfer than angst to the virtual world which I choose to participate in. Lately though something clicked inside my wee brain and I came to some sort of real life balance as it pertains to Entropia Universe.
I guess Entropia Universe is a mini reminder that things are constantly in flux in real life. Some things I can change others I have to deal with as they present themselves. My past actions in my real life and virtual one have caused me a lot of stress over the years. Most of that stress was caused by things wholey out of my control or wanting things to be like they were or how I would like them to be. My actions in the real world and virtual one are entirely my own and how I react to those situations affects the balance I have struggled for all these years.
While my prior post was about dreading the hidden changes version updates could bring, it was also a wake up call. So I gave it some time and a couple VUs and really thought about the impacts of each and how it affected me as a real life person and this virtual one I have created.
This so called Zen of Entropia is about taking ones self out of the equation and by self I mean ones own needs, wants, and expectations. I try to look at Entropia Universe as a whole and not just the one cog or facet I reside in. I have really tried to not dwell so long on that "Last bad hunt" or that unforeseen change that will impact me in some way but I cannot be certain how it will.
You can take lessons you learn in life and use them in Entropia Universe and vice versa. Realizing that balance in ones life is not about constantly remaining even keel its about weighing the good with the bad and rolling along trying to make the best of the situation at hand.
This may not be Zen in a tradional sense but what I have learned in real life, when it comes to dealing with stress and the unforseen, definitely applies to the virtual one I choose to participate in.