Hello,
This is A.
Le Fay of Sylvanosity.
Let's talk a little bit about worry.
Sometimes worry can wear us down or take over our minds.
And sometimes it feels as if it takes over our lives.
When this happens,
It's important to have the tools we need to whittle worry back down to size.
Think of it this way.
If worry were a boat and we were stuck on that boat in a tumultuous storm that is taking us to and fro and no one's steering this boat,
Well,
That wouldn't be what we'd want at all,
Would it?
So,
Let's step out of the boat and instead shrink that boat down to size.
Imagine it is but a tiny carved boat.
Maybe it's carved out of soap or clay or brothel wood.
Whatever it is,
It's small enough to fit in the palm of our hand,
Smooth to the touch,
Showing the signs of being whittled in the shape.
It will float for who knows how long.
It has a sail we've made ourselves.
On that sail,
We've written every worry in our mind.
It doesn't matter if it's clear or it's one worry written over another until that sail of paper is gray with the graphite from our pencil.
But in this boat,
We can place every worry we have because worries have no weight when we let go of them.
They're lighter than air.
We can set them in the hull of this boat.
Imagine them shrinking down and flowing out of us one worry at a time,
Dropping into that boat.
When a worry starts to crop up and repeat itself in our mind,
Don't try and chase it down.
Just replace it with another thought.
Perhaps it could be a thought like worries float,
And let it float out of your mind and into that boat.
And once you feel as if you've placed enough worry into that boat,
I'd like you to go to the shore.
It could be the shore of a babbling brook.
It could be the shore of a lake you remember from your childhood.
Maybe it's a river that you find exceptionally relaxing,
Or the ocean which smooths out the sand one wave at a time.
Whatever body of water you imagine,
May it represent calm and comfort to you.
So here's a secret.
If you're not a fan of water,
Even a sink will do.
If you're not a fan,
Place your worry boat on the water.
Plink.
Imagine it drifting away from you.
If you were imagining yourself on a river,
Watch that boat sail on the current hell it is out of view.
And imagine that that boat dissolves as it travels over the water.
That the worries melt into the atmosphere,
One small thought at a time.
That they let go.
That they're dissolved.
That they become submerged,
Or so tiny they can't even be remembered anymore.
And if it doesn't work the first time you try,
That's okay.
Try again.
Place the boat in the water.
Watch it bob over wave after wave.
Until a wave comes that washes it clean over.
And the boat disappears.
Your worry is no more.
And for a time you can rest and relax.
And imagine that which gives you comfort.
Maybe it's listening to the waves continue.
Or the current carried towards the horizon.
Or maybe your boat is in a bathtub or a sink.
In that case you can make your own waves.
Chumming the water with your fingertips.
Or the boat floats away from the push of your hand.
Maybe into the side of the sink.
Or the far end of the tub.
These are the worries that are resistant.
That try to stay with us and circle back around like the tide coming in.
But that's okay.
Because in our mind's eye we can blink and make the edge of that tub disappear.
And that water flow out for it.
Turning into clouds.
Floating through the sky.
Worrying nothing more than a wisp of pers.
.
.
Um.
.
.
Precipitation that will be released when it becomes too heavy.
Falling back to earth in a drop of rain that spreads and is soaked into the soft green earth.
Nourishing something to grow.
Positivity I believe.
One petal at a time.
Because in life there are things we can change.
We can influence.
We can choose to approach with calm and positivity.
But we do not need to carry worry with us.
Because the things we cannot change.
These things will pass.
And new things will come.
New opportunities.
New ways to see the world.
New ways to see ourselves.
And the situation we find ourselves in.
So let that worry go.
Give yourself the time to rest and reset.
This has been A.
Le Fay with Sylvanosity.
Thank you for joining me.
