When I saw Fandango’s Provocative Question – you are in control? I thought it was worth sharing what I am reading at the moment plus an old blog post of mine from 2009.

I have been reading my friend, Caroline Brewer’s recently published book More Than You Think. The three principles that she mentions help you recognise that you can’t control your thoughts but you can control how you respond to them, if you want to.

Being a fairly action orientated person, when I have needed to change my state, I have done something physical.  However, back in 2009 I learnt that I can do this with thought alone. I’d been working with Vanda North on her Mind Chi project.

We have two mental Chi that chatter away in our heads, one mischievous Chi that will give us a hard time about all sorts of stuff and one good Chi.  The trouble is the mischievous Chi is more verbose, and extremely loud in comparison to the good Chi.  So based on a premise by Jack Black I have created my own virtual house where I can go to escape the bad Chi and hang out more with good Chi.

So far I have six rooms in my house:  I enter my house through a fairy door.  It is green and is in my back garden half way up the back wall, situated among the climbing clematis and wisteria.

The first room is the amphitheatre which is my quiet place.  Some people think this is an oxymoron – so let me explain.  I sit at the top of the pure white amphitheatre with a cobalt blue sky surround. All the odd thoughts that come and go through my head, still do.  I hear them but because I am so far from the stage on which they are acting, I cannot engage. The mischievous Chi still twitters it no longer engages with my conscience thought.

The second is the car lot.  Here I can park all the problematic thoughts that I can’t solve right now.  The parking lot allows me to leave any problem for a short time yet I know I can return to it later when the parking ticket has run out.

The third and probably most important room is the spare bedroom.  This is where I can put to bed the problems I have no control over, but worry me none the less.  Like all problem children, there is a good chance they will challenge the curfew, but it is easier to remain resolute when you have decided the curfew in the first place.  Then, back to bed they go.

The fourth room is the play pen.  This is where I go when I can’t sleep at night.  It is an empyreal place where I can be as creative as I like.  At the moment I use it for the creative writing, I don’t seem to get done during the day.

My fifth is the only one I have lifted from Jack Black’s ideology.  This is because I cannot create anything that better resembles where I need to be.  This is the energiser room.  Sometimes I need to go here just to get myself started – especially if I have been procrastinating over an issue for too long a time.

And finally, my sixth and favourite room is the Autumn room.  I love Autumn.  It is my most favourite time of year.  Here I can look at the colours and feel warmth kissing my cheeks, my neck and my lips.  I can scuff the scruffy leaves on the floor; I can pick up conkers and peel horse chestnuts, kick over acorns and gaze at red berries galore.  This place brings a smile to my face.  I love it. I am really happy here.

Photo by David Gonzales from Pexels

Each room has a special place in my head.  I go nowhere and yet I am half a world away when I choose to be.

Post inspired by Fandango’s Provocative Question #88 You are in Control. Click here for the rules if you would like to join in …

Published by TheHiddenEdge

I love words - they communicate so much or so little depending on how you use them. Come and explore my thoughts with me in this, my learning journal. View all posts by TheHiddenEdge