what is freedom

does freedom mean that you are allowed to do whatever you want. or can we talk about all the limiting influences in your life that actively work against your freedom. your family generic heritage. your specific dna. your metabolic uniqueness. the quantum stuff that is going on at a subatomic level where God is the only ever-present observer. or the intrusion of your souls sickness that inhibits and binds you. or the social influences around you. or the habits that have created synaptic bonds and pathways in your brain. and then theres advertising. propaganda. paradigms. inside the confluence of multifaceted inhibitors. what is freedom REALLY?

i remember the vivid images of a maximum security prison in south africa. i had the privilidge to visit one of the most dangerous criminals in the nation. i am not at liberty to disclose the reason for our meeting or the circumstances. all i can say is that it was life changing. even though i knew he was a dangerous man i could not help seeing the peace and honesty in his eyes. after an hour of listening to his words he asked me a question that would get stuck sideways in my head and heart for most if not all of my life. his question to me was: when is a man truely free? after thumbling and falling over my own words he waited for the silence to become uncomfortable before he spoke again. and these were his words... "i am more free than most of the people walking outside these walls"...and with these words he left me with. i had to figure out to myself what he was refering to as i drove he long road back from the prisons hidden location in the mountainous area. it echoed through my mind. that hot afternoon i came up with numerous answers but none of them satisfying my soul. but this i do know...freedom is not physical. freedom is not the absence of restraint. freedom is not the absence of rules and regulations. freedom is not human rights. freedom is not political. freedom is not philosophical. freedom is not about having a free will. freedom to me is a state of being. to me it is an emotional awareness. to me it is an sense of knowing. to me it is only obtainable in one way. to me freedom is a ONE WAY traffic.