Today’s Story: Thoughts Are Like A Text
“I was sitting on the train all alone that day. Peering through the window in amazement not only at how fast we were moving but from the shape of the clouds. They were moving so fast that I couldn’t keep track of them. Mindlessly I felt the vibration of my phone going off in my pocket. Buzz! Buzz! It kept going off, text after text. Here’s where things get interesting. For what ever reason I began to notice that my mind was racing as fast as the train, the clouds and my phone. I took a deep breathe. How unusual, I thought to my self, these thoughts are like a text being one after another.
Sitting in silence a sudden enlightenment came to me. My thoughts were always coming through at this speed. Boom! Boom! One after another hammering into my soul, body and mind all at once. What I ate for breakfast wasn’t settling how I thought it would. I’m not late for work but, what if something happens along the way? Are there more papers waiting on my desk?
All of the sudden I realized how chaotic my life really had become. I was always doing something, my mind was always faster than my body and these damn clouds looked so nice! It hit me. Slow down and ignore the text. Watch these thoughts that race through my mind instead of judging them and latching on to them. Enjoy the clouds while I can before they’re gone through the window of the train.”
Look At Your Thoughts Like They Are a Text
The story above I owe to one of my greatest mentors, Buddha Bob. He always told me while I was practicing Buddhism at his monastery to look at my thoughts as if they were a cloud traveling by the window of a train. Simply observing and that is it. Our lives can be so chaotic at times that we latch on to everything we see, feel and touch. It can almost lead to an unhealthy lifestyle.
Think of the sound of your phone when it goes off in your pocket. At that instant moment you realize someone is trying to communicate with you. But, if you allow this text to go unread for even a few minutes, it’s almost as if it never came through. Not until you go back after to see you had an unread message which for me, could take days.
Where it really starts to get interesting is, if you really pay attention and observe things you will begin to notice half of what happens has no bearing in our lives anyways. Some thoughts that cross our mind are not meant to be latched on to. It’s a simple concept yet so hard to grasp.
Next time you find yourself in a position where you can not focus or seem to be unable to find a ground to stand on. Think of life like that specific moment like a text. Ding! It pops up then, remains in the background for a moment. If you don’t latch on to that ding and thought it slowly dissipates into the universe. Just like a cloud out of the window of a train.
Question For The Day
Where do you find it difficult to stay focused? Are there points in your life that are hard to handle because everything is happening all at once?
A wise woman once told me, focus on one thing at a time. I laugh every time I say it because it’s so easy to think yet so hard to do. Nothing in life is easy. All moments we experience are going to be difficult to handle and even hard to navigate with perfect precision. Notice what is going on around you. Pay close attention to how you feel. Remember what your primary focus is and then move on. Let that ding pass by as if nothing had happened but only a sound.
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Written By: Will
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