While sitting in my bed this morning, many different futures passed by.

Shitty and scary ones, and also really cool ones.

All while sitting in bed.

When thoughts arose about the things I still ‘have to do’ (and there seem to be many of those), I got concerned and restless.

And when there were thoughts that reminded me that I am always exactly where I am and that all of it is absolute perfection and I have no responsibility for how things work out, I relaxed again.

Then the concerns returned.

Followed up by the relief.

Down.

Up.

New shitty thoughts about me and my future.

Spontaneously followed up by nice ones, relaxing ones.

So of course I tried to hold on to the positive ones, which felt good for a moment.

And then the thought came ‘Why are you trying to hold on to stuff that changes anyway!’, and that made me feel very unenlightened.

All this happened within about ten minutes, and I kept engaged with these waves for at least two hours.

Down.

Up.

Shit.

Cool.

Why does this happen, why all the doubts, the changes, the stories?

Well, the mind simply can’t rest.

It’s not built for that.

And since our awareness is fully engaged with the content of the mind, and the mind is always busy, our life seems very busy too, or neurotic, or hectic, or restless.

Enticing stuff.

Exciting stuff.

Engaging stuff.

The mind can’t rest.

It can’t be satisfied for long because its basic function is to be busy.

It’s always looking, predicting, explaining, holding on, searching, and comparing.

It’s working hard, all the fucking time.

By default, it can’t just rest and be still.

But that doesn’t have to be a problem.

There’s a way out.

Because the mind rests IN something, no matter how busy it is.

And that something is the liberating peace we overlook so dramatically.

We don’t really know that space very well, since we’re so lost in the dynamic world of thoughts.

The secret to peace of mind is IN where it rests.

The space around the mind, the space that holds it together.

The knowing space.

We are aware of the mind.

We are aware of the stories, the glory, and the failure.

We are aware of the changes, the good and the bad, the up and the down.

The secret is that obvious awareness that we always overlook.

We get lost in the clouds, all the time.

But that awareness is like the sky.

That is you.

—

(Photo by @thesollers, for Unsplash)