Pick up and let go of our burdens at will. That’s liberating.

 

Photo by Lyndsey Marie on Unsplash

When we carry a heavy backpack and refuse to put it down all day and allow our shoulders to rest, sooner or later we are going to have very stiff and sick shoulders and back.

 

The same with thoughts we carry. When we carry the past and the future around, especially when we are addicted to the negative thoughts, our minds get so exhausted by the heavy burden.   Why are we surprised that we are so depressed and anxious?

 

The practice of letting go or discarding thoughts, especially unwholesome thoughts, is liberating. It doesn’t happen overnight though. Like every muscle, it needs regular exercise and mindfulness.

 

A good place to start is letting go of the past and the future, and bringing our mind back to the present moment. Living in the past and the future is unwholesome and leads to mental states like depression and anxiety. So starting with awareness of the present is one way to grow the mindfulness muscle.

 

It’s enough at the beginning to set a few times during the day to be still (perhaps putting in the calendar or writing some reminder cards), perhaps to sit down, and close our eyes and tell ourselves to :

 

“Be aware of the present, and discard the past and future”.

 

At the beginning our mind will resist coming back to the present. The old habit of running to the past and the future will persist. But with gentle and kind reminder to ourselves, we will be able to come back to the present more and more.

 

The point is not to avoid thoughts of the past or the future. The point is exactly where to put the backpack. When we need to pick it up we pick it up. When it’s time to put it down, we put it down. We are the boss of the rucksack.

 

So it is with our thoughts. We let go what we don’t need. When we need it we can always pick it up again.

 

Pick up when we need to. Let go when we don’t need it.

 

We are the boss.