Tuesday, April 14, 2015

THINKING/NOT-THINKING

Pursuant to yesterday's entry, I've been thinking about not-thinking and not thinking, and the distinction between the two.  Not-thinking is purposeful, mindful.  It's a mind-opening process, focused and non-judgmental.  Not thinking is merely irresponsible, inattentive.  It leads to broken dishes, spilled glasses and various other stumbles.  At its worst, it leads to car crashes and other disasters.

I try to do as much not-thinking as I can.  Instead, I catch myself doing a lot of not thinking.

Thinking is not so bad.  I do a lot of that, too.  I try to do it, especially, in full consciousness.  When I'm not conscious of the process, my thinking goes off in directions of its own, and often off the path. I call that "distraction."  A nice word, when you think about it.  "Dis", and "traction"...

The mind is a wonderful thing to watch.  What just popped into mine is that memorable saying of Dan Quayle's.  Remember? "What a terrible thing to have lost one's mind.  Or not to have a mind at all.  How true that is."  He was trying to remember the slogan of the United Negro College Fund: "A Mind is a terrible thing to waste."  How true that is.

Which is on my mind this morning.  I think.




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