Amidst my judgements about life, my mind also seems to have this way of taking a situation, a look, someone's words or lack of words, etc. and making up a story about it. Sometimes I think it's just what we do, what our minds do, as an attempt to function in this world. But it has become so apparent to me recently how the mind chooses to make up stories around an event that are rarely fun & beneficial! More often then not, these stories lead to anxiety, drama, miscommunication and resentment.
Let me give you an example: I was in art class one day in elementary school. The teacher was explaining some project we would be working on when I randomly felt this shooting pain in my thumb that was gone as fast as it came, but I know I made a grimaced face as I reacted to it. The teacher, upon seeing my face, reprimanded me for treating her that way. In her mind, I had made a face in response to what she was saying! And I tried to explain--because I loved that art teacher and would never have done something like that! But it was too late-her story was already true and there was nothing I could say to change it-and obviously, to this day, I still think about it.
So I consider how often I do this to others...Someone hasn't called for a while-did I offend them? They sounded a little curt on the phone-did I say something wrong? That email was very direct and to the point-what did I do? They're late-don't they respect me? They didn't rebook-was it a bad treatment? They didn't thank me-do they even care? There's this tendency to judge every situation and turn it into being about me. It's interesting as I become more aware, recognizing my own stories and those of others, how often what I'm reacting to actually has nothing to do with me!
So what are the stories you're telling yourself right now?
