Piecrusts and Freedom - January 30, 2019
The day before Thanksgiving was a beautiful day, and despite the amount of baking and pre-Thanksgiving cooking that needed to be done, I took the advice from my chiropractor to “go play.” So, I made a solo ride on Ms. Dvine (my Harley Davidson Heritage Softail Classic).
As I rode, I noticed something remarkable. I was pondering piecrusts. Yes, that is odd, especially for my hamster wheel mind. Granted I was making piecrusts earlier that day. And surprisingly they were turning out light, flaky, and beautiful, something that rarely ever happens for me. So, during this ride, I was contemplating piecrusts, what I did differently, if I could be as successful with a gluten-free crust, and if I could repeat the process later in the day for a cherry pie.
My mind was uncharacteristically uncluttered, and I was musing about something as benign as piecrusts and, despite the twisties I was riding, I noticed how relaxed I felt. My shoulders were loose, my jaw was slackened, my abdominal muscles were eased, and I could take full deep breaths. It was refreshing, and I wanted more of this feeling and experience in my life. How did I get here?
In my last blog, Sunsets, I spoke about an experience of personal and emotional turmoil that felt like the snow globe of life had tossed me around like a blizzard of chaos. I felt tense, exhausted, beat-up, and stuck. With some help, I became aware of how these thoughts and emotions had become like an old piece of chewed gum. The flavor dissolved long ago and was stiff as a board. The question became, is there value to continue chewing these thoughts? I decided the answer was “no.”
I’ve been stuck before, literally and figuratively. And each time I use a logical, step by step process to help me find movement forward. For me, it is a conscious choice that has required will power, perseverance, and creativity.
In this case, when I noticed a chewed-up thought, I replaced it with song, prayer, and/or mantras (i.e., Star Spangled Banner, Lord’s Prayer, All shall be well).
My other strategy was to create a visualization of sitting in a beautiful, sunny meadow. My thoughts formed the cotton ball puffs in a clear blue sky. The challenge was to notice the clouds but be separate from them, allowing the thoughts to pass by gently and effortlessly, without participating with them.
Of course, some thoughts were a little more persistent and felt like a Boggart from Harry Potter. A Boggart is a creature that will take the form of what the person fears the most and are defeated by laughter. The charm used in the Harry Potter books and movies was “Riddikulus” and caused the creature to assume a form that makes you laugh, counteracting the Boggart’s ability to terrorize. (You can watch the scene in Harry Potter Prisoner of Azkaban. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=doxxfXqpKYA)
I worked to turn my Boggart thoughts into the Mahna Mahna song from The Muppets. They make me laugh, and the ruminating thought disappears. (You can see the Muppet video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8N_tupPBtWQ)
Once the Boggart was easily converted to something more pleasant, I realized that I had the power to leave it locked in its wardrobe. Instead of releasing the Boggart, I decided to leave the wardrobe, Boggart and all, on the side of the highway of life while I continued my journey.
After a few months of consistent practice, I found that I could easily create this space between mind and soul to allow old, chewed up thoughts to dissolve. In this space is peace, calm, and relaxation. It is free of a different type. The internal chaos is quieted, and peace becomes abundant.
© 2013-2019 Kelly Marker, Charlie’s Wisdom All Rights Reserved
