Sometimes the answer does not come from thinking harder.
Sometimes it comes while:
Sweeping.
Gardening.
Washing the car.
Building something.
Digging in the sand.
Interesting, isn’t it?
THE HANDS GET BUSY…
AND THE MIND FINALLY GETS SOME ROOM.
Most of us spend a tremendous amount of time DOING.
Tasks.
Deadlines.
Calls.
Appointments.
Decisions.
Problems.
Business.
Responsibilities.
That works when something needs to get accomplished.
But what happens when you have an issue you cannot think your way through?
You go over it.
Then over it again.
Then one more time.
Same problem.
Same thoughts.
Same mental circle.
Maybe the answer is not:
THINK HARDER.
Maybe the answer is:
USE YOUR HANDS.
HANDS-ON
There is something very calming about working with your hands.
Gardening.
Coloring.
Clay.
Woodworking.
Cleaning.
Organizing drawers.
Sweeping.
Washing the car.
Cooking.
Painting.
Moving things around.
Chopping wood.
Repairing something.
The specific activity is not the important part.
The important part is that your attention moves away from endless internal conversation and into something immediate.
Your hands have a job.
Your eyes have something to watch.
Your body has something to do.
And for a while…
THE MIND DOES NOT HAVE TO RUN THE WHOLE SHOW.
STAY IN THE MOMENT
When you work with your hands, try something different.
Do not spend the whole time solving the problem.
Do not replay the argument.
Do not rehearse tomorrow.
Just work.
Feel the broom.
Notice the soil.
Wash the surface.
Move the object.
Cut.
Fold.
Dig.
Arrange.
Stay with what you are doing.
That is where the relief begins.
PAUSE FOR CAUSE
We sometimes believe reflection means sitting down and thinking harder.
Not always.
Reflection can happen while the body is occupied with something simple.
That is why I like the idea of:
PAUSE FOR CAUSE.
You are not doing nothing.
You are interrupting the normal mental traffic long enough for something else to enter.
INSIGHT.
BREAK THE ROUTINE
Even better, if possible…
Change the surroundings.
City?
Go toward the mountains.
Desert.
Ocean.
Park.
Beach.
Backyard.
Somewhere different.
Routine has tremendous influence over us.
Same room.
Same chair.
Same screen.
Same problem.
Same thoughts.
A new environment can change the rhythm.
Not because geography magically fixes your life.
Because sometimes a different setting helps you notice yourself differently.
CAMPING WORKS WELL
Camping is a good example.
Set up the tent.
Gather wood.
Prepare food.
Clean up.
Walk.
Watch the fire.
Simple tasks.
Everybody can have something to do.
The goal is not:
LOOK HOW PRODUCTIVE WE ARE.
The goal is to enjoy DOING ordinary things.
That is very different.
SINKING IN YOUR THINKING
Have you ever thought about something so long that you were no longer solving it?
You were simply repeating it.
That is what I call:
SINKING IN YOUR THINKING.
Round.
And round.
And round.
Like the hamster wheel.
Plenty of motion.
Same location.
The problem is not thinking.
Thinking is wonderful.
The problem is when thinking becomes repetitive without producing anything new.
That is when the hands can rescue the mind.
AHA-AAAA
Then something funny happens.
You are gardening.
Cleaning.
Building.
Walking.
Washing.
Not trying to solve anything.
And suddenly:
AHA.
There it is.
A different angle.
A realization.
A connection.
A possible answer.
Sometimes the insight arrives because you finally stopped demanding that it arrive.
Interesting system.
DON’T DROP THE RAKE
When an insight comes…
Notice it.
Enjoy it.
Maybe remember it.
But keep working.
Do not immediately turn the moment into another three-hour mental conference.
Let the idea breathe.
Maybe another insight comes.
Maybe not.
No problem.
The goal is not to force revelation.
The goal is to make some room for it.
WE ARE NOT TRYING TO STAY BUSY
Important distinction.
Most of us are already TOO busy.
This is not another productivity trick.
I am not saying:
KEEP YOURSELF OCCUPIED EVERY SECOND.
I am saying choose simple activity that does not demand your entire intellectual system.
There is a difference between:
BUSY
and
ABSORBED.
Busy can be exhausting.
Absorbed can be restful.
THE HANDS KNOW SOMETHING
Human beings have worked with their hands forever.
Planting.
Building.
Cooking.
Repairing.
Making.
Digging.
Carrying.
Crafting.
We were not designed only to:
Type.
Scroll.
Watch screens.
Attend meetings.
Think.
There is something grounding about producing a physical result.
You started with:
THIS.
Now your hands turned it into:
THAT.
The brain likes results too.
VISIT A PRESCHOOL
Here is one way to remind yourself how complicated adults become.
Visit a preschool.
Watch the children play.
Blocks.
Paint.
Sand.
Clay.
Toys.
Running around.
They do not hold a planning meeting before playing.
They do not ask:
WHAT IS THE RETURN ON INVESTMENT OF THIS SANDBOX?
They simply ENTER.
One thing leads to another.
Someone builds.
Someone joins.
Something falls down.
They build again.
Moment to moment.
Very simple.
THE KID IS STILL IN THERE
When you watch children play, something may become familiar.
That kid was once YOU.
You knew how to become completely involved in:
Mud.
Water.
Blocks.
Sand.
Drawing.
A ball.
Then life became:
Work.
Money.
Appointments.
Problems.
Responsibilities.
Fine.
But perhaps the childlike ability to become absorbed in simple activity should not disappear completely.
Your adult self needs that child occasionally.
THE BEACH
I remember going to the beach one day.
Lunch.
Umbrella.
Towels.
Reading material.
No major agenda.
I relaxed.
Watched the water.
Then eventually I started playing near the shoreline.
I dug a hole.
Then built walls around it.
The ocean would come in and fill my little man-made pool.
Very sophisticated project.
Then children came over.
They did not need instructions.
“Can we play?”
Of course.
And off they went.
Dig.
Build.
Move sand.
Water comes.
Repair.
Build again.
Nobody needed a mission statement.
We were just doing something.
And enjoying doing it.
THE OCEAN DID NOT CARE ABOUT MY PROBLEMS
That is part of what made it useful.
The wave came in.
The wave went out.
My little wall fell.
We repaired it.
No philosophy required.
Yet somehow the simplicity itself became philosophical.
LIFE CAN BE VERY SIMPLE WHEN YOU LET IT.
WORK CAN BECOME MEDITATIVE
You do not have to call it meditation.
You do not have to call it mindfulness.
Call it:
WASHING THE DISHES.
Sweeping the garage.
Pulling weeds.
Painting a fence.
The label does not matter.
If your attention becomes quiet and focused on what is directly in front of you…
You may discover the same benefit.
The mind gets a little rest.
THE BODY HELPS THE MIND
Sometimes we try to solve every human problem using more thought.
But the person is larger than the thinking system.
Move the body.
Use the hands.
Change the environment.
Breathe.
Look around.
Give the mind another kind of experience.
A whole person can sometimes solve what an exhausted intellect cannot.
DON’T FORCE THE ANSWER
This may be the most important part.
You are not working with your hands in order to demand:
ANSWER ME NOW.
That would simply become another task.
Instead:
Work.
Play.
Move.
Create.
Let the answer come if it comes.
And if it does not?
You probably still:
Cleaned the garage.
Planted the flowers.
Built something.
Enjoyed the beach.
Not a bad outcome.
DO NOTHING RIGHT… AND YOU MAY DO NOTHING WRONG
There is an old thought hiding here.
Sometimes we interfere with ourselves by constantly trying to improve every moment.
Fix everything.
Analyze everything.
Optimize everything.
Maybe occasionally the correct thing is:
STOP MANAGING YOURSELF SO HARD.
Do something simple.
Do it well enough.
Enjoy the doing.
See what comes.
THE ANSWER MAY ALREADY BE THERE
There are times when we already possess more information than we realize.
We simply cannot hear it because the mental room is crowded.
Thought.
Fear.
Opinion.
Prediction.
Noise.
Then the hands begin working…
And suddenly the internal volume drops.
Now something quieter can finally be noticed.
Maybe that is intuition.
Maybe experience.
Maybe reflection.
Maybe wisdom.
Maybe God whispering where all the shouting stopped.
FINAL THOUGHT
If your mind is tired from trying to solve something…
Put it down for a while.
Pick something else up.
A shovel.
A paintbrush.
A broom.
A garden hose.
A fishing rod.
A piece of clay.
Work with your hands.
Stay in the moment.
Do not chase the answer.
Let the mind rest.
Then watch what happens.
Sometimes the hands are busy…
And something deeper inside finally gets a chance to speak.
PEARLS INSIGHT
Simple manual activity can provide a useful attentional shift away from repetitive thinking. Gardening, cleaning, crafts, cooking, repairs, and other hands-on activities combine physical movement with focused sensory attention, which may reduce mental overload and create conditions in which new perspectives or insights become easier to notice. The goal is not compulsive busyness, but deliberate engagement in uncomplicated activity.
PEARLS FROM THE BOOKS
A recurring principle throughout Pearls for the Soul is:
PAUSE FOR CAUSE.
Sometimes the pause is not sitting still.
Sometimes the pause looks like:
Gardening.
Walking.
Fishing.
Building.
Sweeping.
Working with your hands.
The outer person keeps moving…
While the inner person catches up.
PEARLS CONNECTION
This Pearl connects directly with:
LEGEND IN YOUR OWN MIND… OR PRESENT IN YOUR OWN TIME?
HUMAN BEINGS REMAIN COMPLEX AND SIMPLE… A PARADOX
and
USE IT OR LOSE IT PRINCIPLE
One tells us to come back from mental overactivity.
One reminds us that simple things can nourish a complicated human being.
One tells us to keep the body engaged.
Together they say:
WHEN THE MIND GETS TOO LOUD…
LET THE HANDS DO SOME TALKING.
RICHIE SPEAKS
Thinking too much?
GOOD.
You noticed.
Now stop thinking about how much you are thinking.
Go DO something simple.
Wash the car.
Pull weeds.
Sweep.
Build.
Dig.
Paint.
Cook.
Use your hands.
And don’t stand there demanding:
WHERE IS MY AHA?
Keep working.
The answer knows where you are.
FINAL SAY
Your hands can occupy the moment while your mind releases yesterday and tomorrow.
And somewhere between the two…
Insight may walk right through the open door.
WHEN THE HANDS WORK…
THE MIND RESTS.
— Richie
Pearls for the Soul
when you feed the soul, you feed everything.
pearlsforthesoul.com
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