Thoughts

 

I am an over thinker.  I think about situations that have happened and spin them into something worse than they really were.  It's easy to exaggerate what happened, what others are thinking, and spiral.  Then I feel really bad.  

The short teachings of this monk are often profound for me.  My thoughts are causing me pain.  Something negative may have happened, but it's my thoughts that are causing the most pain.

What am I thinking about right now?    This has been a useful exercise to pull myself into the present.  It's like an instant reckoning for my mind.  What am I doing?  Stop.

In another teaching he says "you cannot force negative thoughts from your mind."   True.  If you pull yourself to the present and become cognizant of what you're thinking that will help.