Heavy
Thinking
“I
just don't know how...to think less. If you know how, then teach
me...”
Aishah
Madadiy (Velvet di Durham)
Thinking
is a dangerous thing. It's like digging a hole so deep you can't
climb out; you just have to keep digging until you get to the other
side. If you are a thinker, you see all sides of every issue, you
weigh the consequences of various choices, and you cannot make
spontaneous decisions. Nothing is ever black and white—everything
is gray. It's heavy and confusing. But, some of us can't help being
thinkers. It's in our DNA.
I
have noticed that people who do not think so much seem happier. They
avoid deep thoughts “like an empty restaurant, not out of
stupidity, but a canny resolve to be happy.” (Alex
Shakar-Luminarium) If you press them to consider options and
consequences, they veer away like they've been struck by a bumper
car. They go shopping, or talk about a movie they recently watched,
or observe the weather. And they smile—cheerfully.
My
mother used to say when confronted with something ponderous, “I'm
just not going to think about that.” And she didn't. It worked for
her. It was as though there was a closet in her brain where she could
put difficult thoughts, and then just lock the door. Problem solved.
It
does seem, however, that people who are able to sail along on the
surface of things without getting too involved with the details,
have a fairly limited notion of the complexities of life. Everything
in their world fits neatly into a category of black or white, true or
false, right or wrong, without much appreciation for the nuances of
almost every situation. Refusing to consider the history, or the possible
outcomes, almost always results in mistakes, sometimes tragic
mistakes.
I
confess that I envy folks who just want to have a good time and be
happy, and I wish them well. Like Aishah Madadiy, I don't know how to
think less. I wish someone would teach me. If you, too, are a
ponderer, and a weigher of pros and cons, then I send you blessings
from a kindred spirit. I hope you have a day free of heavy thinking.
In
the Spirit,
Jane
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