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I am lucky. I was able to escape what many anarchist like to refer to as the "matrix.” I personally define the "matrix" as that incredibly mundane 9-to-5 job, and those three lousy hours of time you get to yourself before going to bed. So many individuals get stuck in this, and they end up repeating their routine over, and over, and over again until they die. One of the biggest problems we have as human beings is that we learn how to create mental habits. Once we create a comfort zone, we rarely step out of it. There is a consequence to this, however. Overstimulation to the same stimuli over and over again will eventually render said stimuli invisible. 

In the fall of 2014, I courageously broke out of my comfort zone. I was an extremely spiritual person, wasting away all of my talent serving people bar food. One day, I was acquainted with a very popular libertarian activist. I fell in love, and went as far as to selling my home, my car, and all of my possessions so I could travel around the country with him. At this time, many people were trying to convince me I was making a horrible mistake, including family members, friends, and coworkers. But I’ve always been a risk taker; a jumper. And somehow I trust that whatever situation I get myself into, it will come with lessons that are the most helpful to the evolution of my own consciousness. 

This activist and I lived happily for two years, however, the circumstances that broke me out of the "matrix” in the first place did not serve my highest potential, and it was time for me to move on. Unfortunately, during this two year period, I was unable to make my own money. In order to leave my situation, I knew it came with the consequence of being financially broken, and I would have to make my way back to my family so I could get back on my feet. Just as I had courageously jumped in 2014, I decided to make the leap again; only this time, I jumped back into the “matrix." This was my biggest nightmare, and it was coming to life. 

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I have cried on many occasions this summer, because I knew I’d have to go back (at least temporarily) into what I believed was my own version of hell. Yet, here I am, back in my home state, and living amongst many individuals who have *never* been empowered to escape their mental habits. Some never will. I have visited a few of my close friends, and have gone to places I once enjoyed, like bars and downtown gatherings. But after two years of my own unique evolution, I just don’t get a kick out of those things anymore. In fact, it saddens me to look around at the people stuck in routine, and I think maybe it’s because I was once in their shoes. And I was miserable. 

Recently, I explored the Farmers’ Market in Madison with a very dear friend. While we were walking, I heard someone in front of us exclaim that he knew he wasn’t smart, and I got a sense that he wasn’t expecting much out of life. It hit me then, that the reason why the “Matrix” metaphor even exists in the first place, is because many of us (who attended twelve or more years of government funded schools) have been taught to be fearful and disempowered. We were indoctrinated since childhood. We learned routine at age 5, and due to this fact alone, it caused many of us to put ourselves in a box, fearing what would happen if we broke the mental walls that confined us. 

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I have been extremely fearful in my returning home, as it is my toughest transition I’ve faced so far. It was only today, however, that I realized I am not stuck in the “matrix” at all. The “matrix" is only a metaphor for mental imprisonment. And the only person who can mentally enslave you, is you. 

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I’ve observed many anarchists (me included) who like to poke fun at the people who are not awake. We call them “statists” and “sheep.” But if going home has taught me anything (and I’ve only been back a week), it is that the people who have been so indoctrinated that they have no hope and fear there is no way out of their mundane life, need our love and understanding more than anyone else. They have eyes, yet they see not; ears that hear not; and hearts that neither feel or understand. Freeing someone from their own mind starts simply with human connection. And as long as I’m here in what I refer to as the “matrix," I intend to connect to as many people as I can. I believe that it is time to empower the ones around us who fear the exact thing that would free them; their true potential. After all, those who do not move, won't notice their chains.