Vacation of the Mind

It snowed some again last night; winter is just not going to give up. I bundled up and went out to defrost and scrape my car so I could go to my physical therapy appointment. They start me out with a hot pack for my neck and back. I was already sleepy, thank you Daylight Saving Time (why, why, why)! The heat and lying down was too good; I closed my eyes I thought about stretching out in the shade on some warm beach with the sounds of waves in the background. Alas, they woke me up and made me work. And the PT is working, better breathing, almost no pain. And then there is the little vacation of the mind on the heating pads.

I've take other mind vacations. Your brain is a marvelous thing. A few weeks ago my husband and I went to a larger city to shop and have lunch. We didn't actually shop much but we did have lunch at a Red Lobster, with a coupon. I told him I was going to pretend I was on vacation and ordered a tropical drink and a seafood salad. I described our imaginary location to him, white sand, salt breeze, palm trees. Maybe Florida, I've never been there, original, no, but after awhile we got into it and were making silly jokes and laughing and talking about smelling the sea breezes and thinking about eating fresh fruit and coconuts. We had a great time. Next time we should wear Aloha shirts under our warm coats and go to Hawaii.

I studied meditation and visualization in my explorative distant past. One of the things I still do is to create a completely safe, relaxing place in my mind, and close my eyes for awhile and chase the stress away. One of my places is a green, sunny meadow on a hillside over a small falls in on a little river. It is like a place I used to hike. The sun is shining through the evergreens on both sides of the river and there are ferns, salal, wild rhododendrons, and little red maples growing under the tree canopy. I can hear the water rush by, feel the breeze through the trees, and relax. I have a little yurt to stay in, supplied with whatever I need. In my head I sit on the grass in front of the yurt and let the sound of the water chase away whatever bothersome thoughts I have. I breath in and out and I become calm and centered again. When I practice regularly I can slip back into it quickly whenever I need to regroup, or get peaceful enough to sleep.

Invent a place or think of someplace you were safe and happy and recreate a picture of that in your head, making it 100% safe and adding little details that relax you. It could be outside, most of mine are, but it could be a safe, comfy room too. It can be anything you want. Once you have the place in mind, sit or lie down where you can relax and let the picture fill your mind and spend a few minutes experiencing the space you made for yourself. Bon Voyage