Dear Reader,
Frequently authors and publishers send me books to consider featuring at the book club. It's a wonderful perk with my job and it gives me the opportunity to send free books to readers, too. As I was perusing the book, How to Change Your Mind: What the New Science of Psychedelics Teaches Us About Consciousness, Dying, Addiction, Depression, and Transcendence, by Michael Pollan, these words felt like they were written just for me:
"Trust and let go. Always move toward, rather than try to flee, anything truly threatening or monstrous you encounter--look it straight in the eyes. Dig in your heels and ask, 'What are you doing in my mind?' Or, 'What can I learn from you?'"
Pollan's advice is pinned to a canvas on the wall of my bedroom. I re-read it often. It's become self-therapy--a self-awareness for me. Whenever I'm feeling afraid, confused or lost, instead of trying to dismiss my feelings or shove them in the back of my mind and continue my day, I sit with Pollan's words for a while. And as I'm having a conversation, out loud with myself, about why I'm troubled, I ask the questions, "What are you doing in my mind? What can I learn from you?"
The first thing I always discover is that simply announcing my fear out loud lessens the weight of it. That's the easy part. The hard part is sitting patiently waiting for answers to my questions. From experience, I've come to realize that in fact, deep down, I do know the answers to "What are you doing in my mind? What can I learn from you?" I'm just not ready to accept them. But eventually as Pollan advises, I am able to "trust and let go."
Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.
Suzanne Beecher
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