The mind is a weather system with constantly changing conditions.
At times,
The conditions are rather pleasant,
With calm winds and penetrating warmth.
Other times,
The internal environment can feel storm-ridden or bleak with its opaque skies.
Some days,
Especially when we are trying to make sense of something in our lives,
A whirlwind of thoughts can sweep through and distort our perspective.
As we engage with the thoughts and get pulled into rumination,
They become more and more agitated.
Eventually,
Ruminating thoughts can form a tornado in the mind,
Uprooting any sense of inner stability.
These tornadoes can throw us into confusion or persistent indecision as the dust in the mind gets shaken up and obscures our perception.
This mind dust can include our assumptions,
Expectations,
Fears,
And stories that are attached to whatever situations in our lives we might be wrestling with.
Like snowflakes that fill a snow globe after being shaken,
Rumination and overthinking shakes up dust in the mind and obscures our clarity.
But what if X,
Y,
Or Z happens?
What will I do then?
It wasn't supposed to happen this way.
I always do such and such,
Or I am such a blah blah blah.
All of this is mind dust.
It's a common habit to try to think our way through conflict and confusion.
We do so in order to try to control outcomes.
If only we can think hard enough,
We can find the solution.
But trying to fix our problems by thought alone is like trying to clean the dust in the living room by shaking the rug.
Thoughts clean up some things,
Just as shaking the rug cleans the rug,
But it still adds to the amount of dust floating about.
Instead,
A much wiser and more gentle approach is to let the dust settle.
Set down your questions,
Release your grip on a situation,
Quiet the circling thoughts,
Stop trying to clean what's still stirred up.
In reality,
That might look like meditating on the breath,
Taking a walk in nature,
Reducing verbal processing,
Occupying your attention with a different activity,
Or moving or stretching the body.
By letting go,
Loosening your grip,
Shifting your focus,
Or completely pausing your efforts for some time,
The tornado of thoughts begins to wane and slowly,
Slowly,
Slowly does the dust of the mind begin to settle and clarity of the heart shines through.
