Be grateful for your crazy, active mind.

This morning, as soon as I woke up, my mind started up. It went something like this:  

…It's raining! Oh, the peonies will be droopy today.
…but the garden does need the water.
…when I was in Indiana, the birds woke us up before dawn.
…ugh, the bathroom really needs to be cleaned.
…I want to talk to Catherine today.

(Note: this is a truncated list. These five thoughts came in an instant, and each new thought replaced the last seamlessly in a chain, with no noticeable pause.)

It was my first morning back in Toronto after a week visiting family in Indiana, and my mind was all fired up. I hadn't made time for writing practice during my visit – not even 10 minutes a day. My mind had become noisy with thoughts.

My mind is like a border collie.

When I don't give it work to do, it can become really annoying and neurotic. It gets into trouble.

But when I put it out in a field with some sheep (read: get a notebook and write in it), all of those active, festering, non-stop, sometimes anxious thoughts can become something else: Scenes!

Not that I'm going to write about cleaning my bathroom or waking up to birds at 5am or calling Cath to say hi or returning my library book (although all of those things would make fine character development).

But it works for me to use that active, neurotic thought energy to write.

Writing calms and focuses my border collie mind.

It's so much better to think, "Oh, good, my mind is so active, I can use this for my writing," than "Oh god, my mind is so active, it's driving me insane." Right?

Be nice to yourself when you catch yourself in thought-chain fever. Remind yourself that all your mind is doing is telling stories and making up pictures. Lots of stories, lots of pictures. And you're a writer, so you can use that power for good.

When you have an active mind, zero in on the pictures and stories instead of feeling harrassed by the noise.

In action, that looks something like this:

…It's raining! Oh, the peonies will be droopy today.
(mind picture: heavy, soggy flower heads dipping down towards the grass)

…but the garden does need the water.
(mind picture: all the potted plants on the patio getting nice and drenched, grass perking up, fresh feeling in the air)

…when I was in Indiana, the birds woke us up before dawn.
(mind picture: the big oak tree in my aunt Madalyn's backyard, and the sound of chirping robins in the dark)

…ugh, the bathroom really needs to be cleaned.
(mind picture: yellow rubber gloves, jar of borax with lemon and spearmint essential oils, dull film over the faucet wiped away by a microfibre cloth)

…I want to talk to Catherine today.
(mind picture: the sound of Cath's voice, her laughter, the last four digits of her phone number, her striped leggings)

Here's how to do it:

1. First, notice that you're thinking. This might take some practice. Your chain thoughts can feel so natural, you might not notice them as thoughts, and you might actually start believing their stories. Meditation can help you sit still and watch your mind. Check out this app if you've never meditated before.

2. Get to your writing desk. You won't feel like doing this, because your mind is pacing in its cage like a cooped-up border collie. Sitting still and not "doing" anything will feel like a waste of your time. Know that it isn't, despite what your mind is telling you. Use all of your willpower and get to your desk anyway.

3. Before you start writing any scenes, take a moment to be present. Here are 3 things to try:         
   • Focus on something physical that's in front of you: study the edge of a piece of wood in the floor, or see what the tip of your pen actually looks like. Write down a few words to describe the thing-ness of the thing.
   • Close your eyes and listen. Write down every single sound you hear.
   • Write a list of words that start with the letter "P".

4. Once your mind has stilled, you will find that you feel more in control. Your perspective has shifted. It's like you can now say to your mind, "Hey – I'm the one who's thinking, here!" Notice that you feel different.

5. Now is the time to direct the energy of your thinking into your story. Start with a scene – something you're already working on, or something new. Allow your mind to picture something (not worry about something). And by "picture" I mean let your mind experience something that is attached to one of the five senses. Now, write it.

Your mind wants to work.

Your active thoughts are so good!

Be thankful for your border collie mind, and give it regular working spurts so it can herd the sheep and feel satisfied, not neurotic.

xo,