If you knew you were physically exhausted you would feel it and probably know what to do. Maybe you would get a few good nights sleep or maybe you would relax for a few days in your home or take a vacation. We know that we need to rest our physical body to stay well and function at our optimum level. But we don’t always take the same level of care when our minds are tired. When and how can we rest the mind so it will function at its optimum level?
There are many things that people do to try to rest and clear the mind. Some of us meditate, do yoga or physical work and these tactics do help to keep thoughts from racing and slow everything down so the mind can recuperate. But not everyone wants to or is able to maintain these disciplines and others may need more help during hectic days. We hold in the mind worries about the future and stressful thoughts of what needs to get done. Sometimes anger or despair arises simply because the mind is desperately crying out for rest and peace. As our minds get more cluttered with more thoughts as we go through our day, we often feel there is no space for anything new to come into our lives and our minds rebel.
At one time I believed that if I meditated and practiced enough yoga I would stop getting stuck in all the twists and turns of everyday life and my mind could rest. Sure I was less reactive from these practices, but life had a way of constantly showing me the unexpected and eventually I’d start thinking and thinking and before I knew it my mind was full, I had trouble sleeping and I was tired.
For me, this pattern changed as I learned to use the tool of Maybe to relax my mind and gain new clarity. I began by associating the idea of Maybe with my breath. If I was in a situation that was tense or unexpected, I trained myself to find my breath and breathe in Maybe and breathe out Maybe. I acknowledged that I can’t prepare for uncertainty, but I could train myself to remember my breath. I might have absolutely no idea what to do when something unexpected happens, but with the idea of Maybe my mind stays open and allows me to know that other possibilities exist. Sometimes the answer comes to me and sometimes only time will tell how a situation will resolve, but Maybe allows me to rest my mind, stop the stress and come back to the moment.
So if you are out of work, having health problems, dealing with the emotional rollercoaster of being a parent, having tensions with your spouse or your boss, just remember to breathe in the idea of Maybe. Allow yourself to release the emotional pain and return to the simple truth that there are many ways the future may unfold.
And who knows, Maybe it will be good or Maybe it will get better. Because until your last breath on this earth, you have Maybe!!!
Link to blog about the Philosophy of Maybe. http://allisoncarmen.wordpress.com/2011/10/05/the-philosophy-of-maybe-2/