Just because you have a thought doesn’t mean it is important or even true.
Not all thoughts are worth keeping. Junk thoughts can and should be recycled. Each one of us has the ability to sort through our thoughts, keep some and discard the rest.
This is a bit like sorting mail.
Think of the last time you got mail from your mailbox. You grabbed a pile of letters, fliers, and coupons from your inbox. Maybe you glanced at a few on your way back to the house. Some, you could tell, were junkmail and could go right in the recycle box. Others looked important and needed to be opened. One or two might have been misaddressed.
Do you open your mail right away or toss it aside for later? Either way, you sort out what is important and what can be tossed aside eventually.
A mind is like a mailbox, each thought a letter. Just because you receive mail doesn’t mean you need it. Just because you have a thought doesn’t mean you should believe it.
Some mail is marked urgent, but that doesn’t mean it is worthy of attention. Marketers often attempt to disguise their letters to make them look more important than they really are. If you bought in to every life insurance policy or credit card offer marked urgent, you wouldn’t have much wealth. If you buy into every urgent thought, you won’t have much mental health. Some thoughts aren’t worthy of attention. You aren’t deceived by the envelope. Instead of taking it at face value, you open it up and take a look. Don’t be deceived by the initial appearance of a thought.
If you kept every piece of mail, your house would be a cluttered mess. Your mind becomes cluttered if you hold on to every thought. Sort through your thoughts like you sort through your mail. Most thoughts can be trashed. Sydney Banks said, “Every one of us has a mental waste basket and we would all be a lot healthier if we learned to use it.“
Don’t neglect sorting through your thoughts. When your mind becomes untidy, use your mental waste basket. You do this by “dropping thought” and removing your attention from them. Believing in thoughts imbues them with a mental energy they don’t innately have. When dismissed, thoughts dissolve back into formlessness. Let them go. This allows new thought to come through.
If you don’t pick up your mail, it fills the mailbox and the post office will put a hold on any new mail you receive. Likewise, if your mind is filled, fresh ideas can’t come through.
Not all thoughts are worth keeping. Wisdom helps you sort through your thoughts, keeping your mind in order. Trash every junk thought you receive.
Leave a Reply