Using thought to solve thought

There’s a big bottle of shower gel in the cubicle, with a pump-action dispenser lid that’s screwed on. (Economy, see?)

It’s sat there, on the side, while I’m showering.

And I don’t think the lid fits perfectly—not airtight, at least—because during the course of a shower, bubbles start to form, around the base of the screw top. Happens every time I’m in there.

It’s quite pretty, I suppose—as the temperature rises, the soapy bubbles slowly grow in size, and reflect all sorts of rainbow colours in the light—but then the temptation to wash them away is quite strong too.

Escaping shower gel’s just going to make it super-slippy for the next person who picks it up, surely?

But a funny thing happens when I try.

As soon as I get the bottle under the shower jet, the bubbles get washed off, and then even more appear, really quickly!!

It’s actually impossible to get rid of them.

Of course it’s just basic physics: I’m heating up the air inside the bottle even more with the shower water; the air’s expanding and hey presto – more bubbles.

Naturally I got to pondering…

Isn’t this what happens with thought?

Suffering of one description or another comes into awareness (like a bubble)… the mind spots this, suspects that thought might be the culprit (it’s all you ever experience, so chances are it’s right 😉)… and then it tries to ‘wash it away’ somehow.

But its reaction—reasoning, pushing it away, problem-solving, despair maybe—is really just heating the system up even more; using thought to solve thought… so even more thought bubbles appear, really quickly.

It’s actually impossible to get rid of them.

I’ve learned—through trial and error (getting my own evidence)—that I can’t wash the bubbles away and the harder I try, the more of them there are.

So I’ve also learned to let them be. They’re not doing any harm, really. And the whole phenomenon is fascinating. It makes me chuckle.

I know that if I don’t get involved at all, the temperature will eventually fall (once I’ve left) and the bubbles will go.

So how about you just don’t get involved at all, next time you catch yourself thinking up bubbles?

💟

Giles

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Trying is lying

“Do or do not. There is no try.” 🧘🏻

The Daily RemindersGiles P Croft