March 20th, 2017
Affirmation: Though no one can go back and make a new start, anyone can start from now and make a brand new end.
Word of the Day: anthophilous (adj):
Stay together, friends.
Don't scatter and sleep.
Our friendship is made
of being awake.
The waterwheel accepts water
and turns and gives it away,
weeping.
That way it stays in the garden,
whereas another roundness
rolls through a dry riverbed looking
for what it thinks it wants.
Stay here, quivering with each moment
like a drop of mercury.
____
The Weight of Worry
We all carry burdens that weigh us down. Interestingly, the intangible things we carry are the ones that weigh us down the most. And perhaps it is precisely their elusive nature that makes them so hard to let go of. To this point, I would like to share a short story with you:
Once upon a time, in a land not so far away, there was a psychology professor who noticed that her students seems perpetually overwhelmed and anxious. This troubled the professor, so she decided to present the students with a metaphor to help them understand the nature of their stress.
In class the following week, the professor came in with a bag, from which she pulled out an empty glass and a bottle of water. She proceeded to fill the glass with water and held it up for all the students to see. The students nodded their heads knowingly, and some rolled their eyes, expecting the professor to probe them on the typical "is the glass half empty or half full?" question.
To their surprise, the professor asked, "how heavy is the glass of water than I am holding?"
After a brief pause, students started blurting out various answers ranging from 8 ounces to 2 pounds. The professor patiently waited until the voices in the room quieted.
Finally, she said:
"The way I see it, the absolute weight of this glass of water is irrelevant. The real issue that impacts the answer to my question is how long I hold the glass. If I hold the glass for a couple of minutes, it's pretty light. But suppose I hold it for an hour: my arm with probably ache from the weight. And what if I held the glass for a day straight? My arm would likely cramp up and go completely numb and paralyzed, causing me to drop the glass to the floor. In each of these instances, the weight of the glass is constant, but the longer I hold it, the heavier it feels to me."
The class nodded in agreement as the professor continued:
"Your worries and stresses and anxieties about the future and regrets about the past impact you in much the same way. When you think about them for a short time, nothing major happens. If you ruminate on them a while longer, you will begin to ache. And if you spend all day on them, you will feel completely numb and paralyzed - unable to do anything else until you drop them."
___
So today, no matter what has happened or what you worry about concerning the future, try to lay down all your burdens as early in the evening as you can. Live each day and be done with it. Do not carry your worries with you through the night and into the next day with you. Too many of us live this way, adding more and more to our "worry bags" with each passing day of our lives. If you feel the weight of yesterday's stressors and tomorrow's worries, it is a good indicator that it is time for you to put the glass down.
What things are currently stressing you out? What part of these stressors belong to the past? What parts belong to the future?
What can you do about the current stressors? How would your highest self address them?
What would letting go of these stressors - or at least setting them down for a while - look like? What makes doing so challenging? What has gotten in the way in the past?
Remember: worrying is like a rocking chair - it keeps you busy, but it doesn't get you anywhere.
Affirmation: Though no one can go back and make a new start, anyone can start from now and make a brand new end.
Word of the Day: anthophilous (adj):
1. attracted by or
living among flowers.
2. feeding on
flowers, as certain insects. Also, anthophagous.
The Waterwheel
Stay together, friends.
Don't scatter and sleep.
Our friendship is made
of being awake.
The waterwheel accepts water
and turns and gives it away,
weeping.
That way it stays in the garden,
whereas another roundness
rolls through a dry riverbed looking
for what it thinks it wants.
Stay here, quivering with each moment
like a drop of mercury.
____
The Weight of Worry
We all carry burdens that weigh us down. Interestingly, the intangible things we carry are the ones that weigh us down the most. And perhaps it is precisely their elusive nature that makes them so hard to let go of. To this point, I would like to share a short story with you:
Once upon a time, in a land not so far away, there was a psychology professor who noticed that her students seems perpetually overwhelmed and anxious. This troubled the professor, so she decided to present the students with a metaphor to help them understand the nature of their stress.
In class the following week, the professor came in with a bag, from which she pulled out an empty glass and a bottle of water. She proceeded to fill the glass with water and held it up for all the students to see. The students nodded their heads knowingly, and some rolled their eyes, expecting the professor to probe them on the typical "is the glass half empty or half full?" question.
To their surprise, the professor asked, "how heavy is the glass of water than I am holding?"
After a brief pause, students started blurting out various answers ranging from 8 ounces to 2 pounds. The professor patiently waited until the voices in the room quieted.
Finally, she said:
"The way I see it, the absolute weight of this glass of water is irrelevant. The real issue that impacts the answer to my question is how long I hold the glass. If I hold the glass for a couple of minutes, it's pretty light. But suppose I hold it for an hour: my arm with probably ache from the weight. And what if I held the glass for a day straight? My arm would likely cramp up and go completely numb and paralyzed, causing me to drop the glass to the floor. In each of these instances, the weight of the glass is constant, but the longer I hold it, the heavier it feels to me."
The class nodded in agreement as the professor continued:
"Your worries and stresses and anxieties about the future and regrets about the past impact you in much the same way. When you think about them for a short time, nothing major happens. If you ruminate on them a while longer, you will begin to ache. And if you spend all day on them, you will feel completely numb and paralyzed - unable to do anything else until you drop them."
___
So today, no matter what has happened or what you worry about concerning the future, try to lay down all your burdens as early in the evening as you can. Live each day and be done with it. Do not carry your worries with you through the night and into the next day with you. Too many of us live this way, adding more and more to our "worry bags" with each passing day of our lives. If you feel the weight of yesterday's stressors and tomorrow's worries, it is a good indicator that it is time for you to put the glass down.
What things are currently stressing you out? What part of these stressors belong to the past? What parts belong to the future?
What can you do about the current stressors? How would your highest self address them?
What would letting go of these stressors - or at least setting them down for a while - look like? What makes doing so challenging? What has gotten in the way in the past?
Remember: worrying is like a rocking chair - it keeps you busy, but it doesn't get you anywhere.
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