Welcome to the Mind Fuzz newsletter, a recap of three things that are on my mind this week.
1. Driving in silence
Can you remember the last time you drove in silence? Our days are so full of consumption and background noise that our drive to and from work is perhaps the only time we get to sit alone with our thoughts.
Instead of filling it with music or a podcast, I’ve started driving in silence. There’s a huge amount of friction when I first get in the car and don’t put anything on, but it quickly diminishes after I start driving and actually paying attention to things.
I’m learning that these times of silence and boredom are essential to a sustainable enjoyment of life. Why have we lost our ability to be bored?
2. Waking Up
Sticking to the theme of mindfulness – I have come across the most incredible meditation app. I’m not kidding when I say Waking Up by Sam Harris is actually changing my life.
This isn’t an ordinary meditation app. It will make you question your physical body and your sense of self. For this reason it can actually make your brain hurt during the meditation sessions because you’re thinking in ways you never have before – but that’s why it’s so good!
There’s a 14-day free trial, so there’s no cost in trying it for yourself. There’s also a scholarship option which allows you to get a 12-month subscription for free if you can’t quite afford it.
And, obviously, this isn’t sponsored.
3. Rotten Trees
“It doesn’t matter which branch of a life we get to live, we are all on the same rotten tree,” Nora Seed from The Midnight Library by Matt Haig.
You can look at this quote in a negative way, but I think there are some positive insights to take from it.
No matter how incredible your life is, suffering will always persist. The acknowledgement and acceptance that suffering is part of life is the cornerstone of Buddhist philosophy. However great someone’s life may be, they’re still trudging through most of the everyday crap that’s getting you down.
The tree may be a bit rotten, but it doesn’t mean that other parts of it aren’t flourishing.
A closing question for you
How often do you intentionally make yourself bored?
