This time of year, with the holiday approaching and the weather getting colder, I begin thinking of the ocean and the beach. I love the beach. It's the one place in the whole world where my mind can empty out and I'm completely in the moment.
Since I was a little girl, I somehow have multiple thoughts going on my head all the time. In order to go to sleep at night, I had to focus really hard on one thought just to crowd out all the others. As with most people, I've found that as I got older life often got a little too chaotic - especially as a single parent when the expectations on my time always outnumbered the hours in each day. I made it through those years but haven't learned how to turn the brain off. I don't seem to be able to multi-task in my activities -- but I can't stop the brain from multi-tasking. It's in overdrive all the time. Except on the beach.
When I'm on the beach I can stare out into the waves and let the roar fill my head. And I hear nothing else. When I walk on the beach, looking for shells, I let the waves lap my ankles and listen to the gulls. And I hear nothing else.
So at this time of year when the temperature begins to dip, the wind begins to whip outside, and the whole world seems to be in crazy overdrive mode, I think of the beach, the roar of the ocean, the lapping of the waves, and the sea shells. All is good.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Strange time of year to think about the beach....I recommend yoga for an overactive mind. The final pose (savasana) is the hardest because it requires you to clear your head. I struggled with it for years. An overactive mind must run in the family. After a while, I started to get "good" at it. After nearly a year of doing hardly any yoga at all (there weren't any classes that I liked in Virginia Beach and when I came back to Baltimiore, I was so big that I was hesitant to walk into a new class), I've started back up (though with no regularity) and found that although I agree you can't be "bad" at yoga, since my speed racer mind is again difficult to control, I feel like I'm "bad" at it. Which means I need to go more often. Regular meditation in which you focus on a single mantra or your breath could provide you with the seashore effect....
ReplyDeleteHi Bonnie,
ReplyDeleteI hope you don't mind my commenting.
I relate to the noisy mind. The "change of life" is understated. I have found that middle age is guilty as charged. Noisy mind, sag and drag, empty nest, comfort food. Shish! Ahh, if only there were an ocean nearby accompanied by moderate temperatures. :)
Yoga don't work for me, it makes my mind go even faster. A good one hour walk seems to be calming, but doing it is another story.
You are very welcome to comment.
ReplyDelete