A couple of weeks ago, walking through the park, I began to have some thoughts that moved me in the direction of shame.  As I became aware of the process, I dropped into what I realized was a choice point.  I could either continue to develop the thoughts and feed the shame that threatened to build, or I could literally drop the subject and choose, instead, to focus on the beauty of the trees all around me.  As I shifted my attention from the shame thoughts to the green of the trees and the sound of the birds, I increasingly noticed that my mood shifted automatically and the shame thoughts completely disappeared.  To this day, I can’t recall what triggered the thoughts, or what they were.  They moved into the background, and then out, of my awareness.

This week’s experiment invites you to become aware of how and when you feed thoughts that diminish your sense of well-being.  We feed thoughts by either projecting into the future with our worries and distress, or by reviewing past transgressions or failures.  Once you become aware of how you feed your distressing thoughts, the next step is to practice stopping – right in the middle of a thought, just stopping.  It’s a pure act of will.  Then, focus your attention on something that conveys a sense of beauty, calm, resilience, inspiration – whatever offers support to a sense of well-being.  As you do this, the old, distressing thoughts, will move on through.  They can only stay in place when you grab hold of them and feed them in some way.  Otherwise, they inevitably keep moving on out of awareness.

I’ve touched on this kind of process before, and want to offer it again as it’s a matter of practice, practice, practice to create new habits and capabilities.  As with all the experiments, allow yourself to bring curiosity to this one.  Pay particular attention to the difference in body states as you move from distressing thoughts to something that inspires and nourishes you.  It may surprise to you to discover that you really *can* shift from distress to well-being by deciding where to focus your awareness and attention.  And, you may also discover that it requires some real effort to shift your thinking.  Please keep in mind the difference between effort and struggle.  Effort is like building new muscle and we often have to exert ourselves when we engage in muscle building.  Struggle is a whole different response, which fights with what is.

And so, I invite you to play with this week’s experiment and notice what you discover.