Waxing Poetic

The Moon,
Like a half-eaten baked brie,
hangs yellow and dripping,
just above the edge of the horizon.

~VCreatrix

Resistance: It's Futile

A a few weeks ago I lay enjoying THE nicest aromatherapy hot stone massage at a local working Lavender Farm. I was intending to relax, but my brain was still tallying and sorting. I may just have been beginning to compose another blog entry about the nature of consciousness and creativity, but I was there to rest, revitalize and clear my mind. My thoughts slowed but did not stop entirely. I remember vaguely contemplating the installation of a couple of volume sliders into my body. One for "thinking" and one for "feeling", and that got me to thinking about resistance...

I tried to focus on my breathing -- trained my awareness on the ebb and flow of the wave of sublimely scented air in the room. This went extremely well for about 1.4 seconds. Did my mind seem louder because my surroundings were quiet, or did it see this as an opportunity to step onto centre stage? When I watch a terrific movie, I lose myself in the show, suspend my disbelief, and "live" in the story for most of the duration of the show. Why is it that so difficult to "check out" and leave my thoughts behind to lose myself in the intensity of the feelings of relaxation?

One of the problems might just be that darned amphibian brain of ours. The one that is constantly aware of impending dangers, searches out symbols for possible threats and reacts. Self preservation depends on the speed of these connections, calculations and reaction. In 1960, Karl Pribram described the basics of motivation as the four "Fs": Feeding, Fighting, Fleeing and Reproduction.

Perhaps intensity is the key. Stimulation junkies that we modern folks are, need to get pretty riled up before their thoughts turn off. (I can think of only a few activities that can generate this effect.)

Stepping out of your regular routine, out of the ordinary, out of your comfort zone... and sometimes even into a zone of total comfort all help keep thoughts in a healthy sphere. Unless of course, you begin to obsess about about your level of performance in a new activity, or have added far too many new things to your old routine without letting something go...

Often, as we work, we ponder vacation. On vacation we can't help worry somewhat about our responsibilities back home. We resist the present moment in favour of thoughts of the future or the past.

A holiday to Shuswap Lake last week had me winding down, but not before cranking up the heat. I had repacked my things into a larger bag at the last minute and neglected a side pocket of unmentionables and my carefully chosen bathing suits. We arrived as the afternoon heat peaked and I rushed to change into my bikini... which was of course back in the bag left at home. I ached with regret and annoyance -- felt not a stoic acceptance of the predicament, but a strong dissatisfaction with it. Ok, I experienced some serious resistance to my immediate situation. I must admit to over-indulging in self pity before settling on the ad hoc solution of grabbing a $10 suit of the rack at Field's at 5 minutes to closing. It looked like a shower curtain from a cheap hotel, (oops there's resistance again) but at least I could take a flying leap into the lake.

I had intended to initiate a more exhaustive search for a better suit the following day; but strangely, the lake beckoned more strongly. Lying on the bow of the boat several hours later, finally allowing myself to unwind and enjoy the pure joy of warm summer breezes, I marveled at how the water sparkled and the clouds drifted and that felt wonderful.

If this was a movie there would follow an inspiring montage (to the music of "I can see clearly now the rain is gone...") Syrupy scenes of Moi, learning to let go... A series of tableaus, would show me struggling awkwardly in a frustrating circumstance before turning my frown upside down after a moment of inspiration and twinkle in my eye. My family and friends would gently remind me and I would not bite off their heads... no, instead I would shug my shoulders and nod knowingly... then we would all laugh out loud like at the end of a kids cartoon.

[Attention idealists: Finish Article Here]

But back at homestead, I'm sitting in a pile of dirty laundry and a long list of "to dos" I'm feeling the tension again. I may have made a sarcastic comment or two about having to do all the dirty work myself. There were most probably several sighs and clicks of the tongue followed by some procrastination and avoidance manefesting as strong desire to first "catch up on news and events" (aka..Brangelina's twins and Facebook).

Sure, it's human nature to focus on what could be rather than what is, but it makes about as much sense as complaining about how gravity keeps pulling everything to the ground. Resistance, yep.

For more advice about avoiding resistance while obeying the laws of physics read: Time Shifting vs Time Management--Stephan Rechtschaffen