Sometimes, you just get taken over by events. A loved one is sick or worse, an unexpected bill looms up, a trusted machine or arrangement breaks down. Of course at such times, you are going to be upset. I have a theory that women are more likely, and maybe more able, to accept upset into themselves and be quite upset, for a while. Maybe ten minutes, maybe three hours, three days or three years. But, after that, they can often put the upset aside and decide if something should be done or rather, the issue be shelved, tossed or recycled somehow. Men often simply swallow any emotional reaction and immediately attack the problem. Both methods have their advantages and costs.
But if things are going reasonably smoothly and no personal issue needs urgent attention, it may be a good time to arrange your thinking. A good first step is conscious and attentive quiet. This is the first step for many religious people and for those who simply attend to their minds, watching to see what comes up in maybe a five or ten minute period. After a few minutes of open thinking, I like to go get a pencil and paper. I often find a pencil is conducive to natural jotting down key words and phrases. I have enough experience eliciting and nourishing ideas to know that it is disgustingly easy to get a good idea and forget what it is in the next minute. A few notes can really help. And don't tell me it happens because I am old. I was just as quick at forgetting good ideas when I was 15.
A piano keyboard offers a wide range of possible notes. In the same way, you can arrange a thinking background with any emotional tone you want. Having some music of the right tone can help. Making the right stretches for a few minutes helps very much. Some people do a few dance steps to a good beat. You can select the atmosphere and perspective you want. You don't have to be pointed in the direction that the major news organizations set.
It is not wise to stick with a steady diet of smiley faces and puppy videos, just as it is unhealthy to limit yourself to a diet of codfish oil and cow's liver. Thus, many of world's wisdom and mind experts advocate facing what you have. Not just in your mind but all around you, behind you, above you. What's up with your part of world? If it looks like nothing much, try to look deeper since there is always a lot happening that the CBS and Fox News reporters and editors have passed over or not heard about or simply didn't have space for.
