What makes a man?
Time & cuff links.
Just kidding – I’m not about to answer that question in any in-depth way today. It’s far too cold and there are far too many awful things happening in the world to offer much more than distraction and respite. We won’t be getting that serious.
We’ll get serious in another way.
Whenever the world threatens to overwhelm, when it bears down just a bit too hard to carry on, I tend to pause and take stock of the things over which I have any semblance of control. That immediately removes an enormous amount of mental clutter, because too much space is consumed with dwelling on what-ifs and could-haves and should-haves. Even the been-theres and done-thats can be boxed up and shipped out. Decluttering the mind is as important as decluttering the dwelling space (if you’re a Virgo like me that means a great deal).
And so I stop and sit very still while an icy wind menacingly surrounds the house.
I notice how shallow my breathing is, and slow and relax it. Narrowing the windpipe and elongating the breaths, there is instant relief. My shoulders relax, my gaze softens, and the years of practicing meditation immediately set my countenance to calm.
Now I can go about tending to the simple task at hand: selecting cufflinks (a gift from a friend – thank you Paula!), a timepiece (a gift to myself after a promotion), and a vibrant silk scarf for a possible office outfit (a dash of color for a week of gray). This is what I can control, and these little things will bring me simple joys.
Trifling worries, and more substantial concerns, are pushed out of my headspace for the moment, and in the relief that ensues I’ll be better able to handle them at a later time. Some will fall away by then because they never really mattered in the first place. This is how mindfulness works its magic.
