Squeezing out the not-so-good to make room for the good

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I have a photographic memory, and as such have vivid images rummaging through my mind quite a bit during my waking, and dreaming hours.

Of late, I've noticed images from movies I've seen come up in my awareness. Not of a movie that I watched last week, but one I watched 15 years ago or more (e.g. Pulp Fiction). It seems that some of the violence and negative scenes are etched in my existence forever, and remain quite clear and intact. This is rather incredible to me. I wonder why I watched those movies in the first place, and had I known I'd be so tied to their images years later, would I have been so nonchalant about the violence I was watching?

Instead of questioning my past, I'm moving forward with intention. I've not watched violence or extreme drama (is that a category?) on television (not having a t.v. helps a lot) or in movies, and I find this intention streaming into my book selections.

What do I want to be putting into my mind? How does it affect me? Is it going to support me in my life?

When I look at those three questions, it's easy to say, "No thanks" when faced with two hours of violent 'fiction'. I realize that violence is violence; whether it's fiction or not, my body can't tell the difference.

What am I doing with my spare time, if I'm not watching t.v. or movies, or reading the third installment of Stieg Larsson's "The Girl With The Dragon Tatoo" series? I'm reading about adventure travel. I'm reading about yoga and psychology. And better yet, I'm making my own plans for adventure travel with my family, and I'm practicing yoga and making plans to set up my yoga therapy practice. I'm squeezing out the not-so-good of brief 'entertainment', be it violent or not, and making plenty of space for the great things that support me and my interests.

My mind is thankful for the peace and inspiration.

It's all in the mind

I rode my bike to the aquatic center to go lane swimming this afternoon. The ride is less than five kilometres, and there is ONE BIG HILL. The whole ride, I was wondering if I should scoot down this road or go down that trail to attempt to bypass the ONE BIG HILL. I spent a lot of time and mental energy pondering my route all associated with the assumption that the ONE BIG HILL would be, well, just awful to ride up. In the end, I took the shortest route (which is typically the best route, in a cyclist's mind) and came up to the ONE BIG HILL, and rode up with a teensie bit more effort exerted than going up a regular sized hill. At the top, I wasn't even breathing hard. All that mental energy spent for what? one big hill, that in the end, wasn't THAT BIG.

This lesson could be extended to other situations in my life where my mind spends a lot of time thinking some goal is going to be really difficult to pursue or complete, in terms of time, energy, money, whatever... And in the end, it's usually way less of a big deal than I made it out to be. I keep learning this lesson and then letting it slip by the wayside when thoughts of difficulties with the next goal come barreling in.

To Be Happy

Source: http://vividlife.me/ultimate/wp-content/uploads/2010/10/happiness.png

I recently read about 15 Things You Should Give Up To Be Happy.

It is a succinct and wonderful list. My top five are to give up the need to always be right, to give up my need for control, to give up on my resistance to change, to give up attachment, and to give up my living my life to other people's expectations.

What kind of a person would I be if I tried to let go of these things? Happier, yes, but I also see a softer, more peaceful version of myself with patience and wisdom and lightness. It's all there inside me, waiting for me to open to it all in my own time.

Riding

Today's bike rides filled me full of fun, of light, and of energy.