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| Becoming your best is all in the mind |
The mind is an amazing machine, but it can only do as its told
This morning while trying to wake up, I let my mind wander onto the subject of what to write about. I go to sleep with an idea allowing my dreams and subconscious mind to work things out. (I think I may write about sleeping better tomorrow, or maybe I’ll wait until next week when everyone’s holiday cheer runs out.) Okay, you just got a glimpse of my mind meanderings; anyway I went back and forth and all over the place. My thoughts shifted to more pressing matters; should I eat breakfast and write first or should I get a round of yoga in beforehand, oh, I know, sun salutations, I love those. Maybe I should fast today and meditate throughout the morning.
On its own my mind rambles quite a bit, but this morning it could have done The Amazing Race. I wondered why I had been so distracted in the first place and it hit me; I had gone to sleep with the television on. I had been watching a documentary on something science-y and it was fascinating at the time, but then I fell asleep, 5 minutes later. I had been dreaming about craters in my skin, getting an entire quarter collection; something I felt I must have and then signing up for a meal plan and exercise bike. I tossed and turned and realized where the term came from as I literally tossed my own thoughts out allowing them to be turned into someone else’s. When I finally did get myself together, I knew that I my mind had been distracted at its most vulnerable time; while it was passively active.
It took me several minutes to regain control of my own thinking (I really wanted those quarters,) and when I did, I remembered what I needed to know, I had a mammogram scheduled at 8:30. I needed to start my day and my year of wellness with my regularly scheduled exams and appointments. I recalled the massage I had booked two weeks ago and the fact that I wanted to see if I could get in a facial ( women tend to hold a great deal of stress in their facial muscles—so for me a facial not about pampering, it’s about wellness.)
As I wrestled with these practical matters, I remembered a friend asking me to think positive thoughts about the staff in the long term care facility where his ailing mother receives care. He talked about their love and compassionate care and how they deserved the salary of a corporate executive, complete with the bonus. He told me that his mother had introduced him numerous times and each time the staff members responded as if they’d never seen him before. I took a moment to see the staff members in my mind working through the pain of others and their own stuff and I sent thoughts of joy in their direction. I thought a bit longer and I could remember my mother doing the same job. I thought of the year she’d expected a holiday bonus but got a turkey instead. And then I remember how she turned our lack into a gift for us and the residents of the nursing home. My siblings and I all put on our best clothes and went in to see folks singing songs and listening to their stories. I smiled to myself and knew that this was memory I needed and that no quarter collection could ever replace it.
We are so easily distracted from our own life course. Our mind is an amazing machine but it does as it’s told; like a computer if you put garbage in, you get garbage out.
· What distracted you this morning? Try to recall the specific details of the hijacking of your mind.
· Replace those thoughts with the truth that you need for the day.
· Who can you think about positively?
When we allow the distractions of others in the way, we miss our own path to wellness.
Be present, Be well, Be whole
Bertice Berry, PhD
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