Do you ever find yourself particularly “zoned in” on a problem, stressor, or argument? It may feel like you’re caught in a mental spiral, or a spider web of especially sticky thoughts. We (humans) have all been there. And, we’ve all wished not to stay there long, but the more we resisted the experience, the stickier it may have become.
One way to get “unstuck” from rumination is by putting things into perspective. There are a few different ways to approach this, but today I’ll share a nature informed metaphor and a practice you can try from wherever you are. Before we start—there’s really not a right or wrong way to do this, so I invite you to let it be whatever it is for you, today.
Check out the image above. Notice what you sense and observe about it. What stories show up? What questions come to mind?
Now, shift to thinking about a recent time in which you experienced some of the sticky thoughts and feelings described above. Choose something workable, nothing too intense. Something you’ve already come to peace with or figured out could be a useful example to practice with for this exercise.
Looking at the image of the tree, or finding your own tree in nature nearby, see what happens when you think of that recent experience from the “zoomed in” view. Ask yourself these questions:
- How workable and manageable does it feel?
- How confident do you feel that there’s a way out of this tangled web?
- How aware are you of the full picture?
Once you have a sense of that, imagine a shift to panning out or widening the lens. If you’re doing this in nature, you might move further away from the tree. If you’re following along virtually, take a look at the image below. First, get a sense and notice what you observe differently than when you were zoomed in. Then, ask yourself these questions again, from a different perspective:
- How workable and manageable does it feel?
- How confident do you feel that there’s a way out of this tangled web?
- How aware are you of the full picture?
What did you notice as you took in more of the surrounding landscape, or the bigger picture? Holding that awareness in mind, let’s zoom out once more with the below image, or, move further away if you’re doing this practice in nature.
Is the story still the same, or did it change or open up new possibilities? I invite you to tap into the spirit of curiosity and just notice what’s different. Notice the tangible physical differences of the natural element you’re observing, and attend to any mental differences in your view of the problem identified.
A couple of notes as you wrap up your practice for now:
Like any type of exercise or skill, give this some practice and know that you may experience it differently each time and depending on the content or situation. If you gave this a try, I’d love to hear how it went in the comment section below. I also welcome your suggestions for future blog posts. Until next time, be well.
