Recently I applied to a number of galleries, some local, one online.
While I was quickly rejected from the online gallery, one local gallery responded positively within a day or two, and the other gallery, which was my top pick, emailed within a week to let me know I WAS IN!
I felt elated when I read the email, psyched that my work will be in a super popular gallery in the tourist mecca of Asheville, North Carolina.
And then, within minutes, the mind in me found something else to worry about, something else to be disappointed in. The happy feeling I got when I first read the email did not last.
Can you relate? You’ve worked hard for something for a long time, whether it’s getting a different job, finding the perfect house, getting accepted into a particular college or graduate program, or anything else that you anticipated would bring you happiness. And it does, for a second, and then regular old life bombards you with bills and illnesses and fights with your sister. The happiness that the thing brought you is fleeting, always.
I am bummed out by this. I have chased a lot of different dreams for a lot of years, hoping one of them would bring me lasting satisfaction.
But I’m also somewhat relieved. Because I now realize that what will make me truly peaceful is detaching from all the BS the mind is constantly spewing. And that peace is not reliant on some external goal, like selling a certain amount of art or getting accepted into a particular gallery.
But how do I, do we, as a species, consistently detach from our minds?
I don’t freaking know.
The End.
Ha ha, okay, I’ll at least give this a go: We do all the things we know we’re supposed to do. We meditate. We breathe and let go of the thoughts that plague us. We practice writing down our thoughts and questioning how true they are. We pick ourselves back up when we fall down.
Your mind is constantly telling you stuff. It’s trying to help you. It wants to make sure you do all the things you’re “supposed” to do. But it’s operating from a lower place, a place of fear. It doesn’t really know what’s best for you.
Your mind thinks getting an award or accolade will make you happy. It will not. There’s nothing wrong with getting accolades, they just don’t create permanent peace. Your mind also thinks you can’t get the things you really, truly want, because it’s operating from a fearful place all the time.
To live beyond the mind you have to start tapping into that space that exists, well, beyond the mind. That means tapping into your intuition. That means meditating. That means asking for guidance. That means letting your thoughts pass through you, instead of attaching to them and making them true.
This is not for the faint of heart. This is for those who wish to taken on a greater challenge than they’ve taken on before.
I feel like I have no choice in the matter. I can’t seem to stop trying to get to a place of greater peace and happiness. I don’t even know how to stop trying.
So on the one hand, it’s a relief to know that I don’t have to rely on something external, like an upcoming vacation or a random infusion of cash, for happiness. But it’s also daunting, because I know that even when good feelings come from getting a bit of good news, those feelings won’t last for long.
Getting what the mind thinks you want won’t make you happy, but getting beyond the mind may very well bring you peace.