extraordinary minds

Reading this story about “imagining away cancer” really has me thinking today….our minds are extraordinary.

The connection between the mind and body absolutely fascinates me. I believe that everyone deals with same basic human emotions: love, happiness, sadness, grief, etc. I also believe that the mind can heal in ways we do not fully understand. All of the new-age thinking and the faith based [longer standing] thinking really have a lot in common.

Many people find peace in prayer and rely completely on God to help them. I like to take this thinking one step further and really experience my life as a reflection of God’s. After all, according to standard Christian faith, we are created in God’s image. What I don’t understand about this are the limits that many people place on themselves. If we are in fact created in God’s image, aren’t our capabilities endless? Yes, we are human. Yes, we are bound to Earth for some time. Yes, we will all die. Those things we cannot control. However, everything else in between is filled with endless options. Tuning into your body and into your needs can be the greatest thing the mind can do; and it can also be the hardest. Society places limits on us. Science places limits on us. Life places limits on us. Escaping those limitations is the first step in realizing the ability of the mind.

I think the easiest way to understand the power of visualization and the mind is to reflect on times in life when this occurred naturally. One of my favorite personal examples was when I studied abroad in college. I grew up knowing I wanted to study in Europe. I wanted to learn the Spanish language and live where it was spoken. Now, I didn’t end up in Spain (rather Luxembourg). However, I never once thought that studying abroad might NOT happen. Instead of getting caught up in the what-ifs and the associated costs, I made up my mind and knew I was going. My mom remembers that during a tour at Miami I said I needed to go to the Study Abroad slide-show presentation because I would be studying abroad in college. I don’t remember my 17 year old self being so determined to do this…but I also don’t remember not going, being an option. So, I did it. I spent the second semester of my Junior year in Europe and I still relish over those memories daily. This seemed like a natural thing to do for me, and my mind knew it was going to happen.

Some days I wish I could go back and capture that determined 17 year old. Some days I feel I haven't changed a bit. It’s easy for me to get caught up in the routine. The 9-5 crunch, the after work chaos that my life usually entails. The wasted weekends that slip by. It’s easy to feel out of control. It’s easy to feel lost. It’s easy to feel broken. It’s easy to feel sick. Negative feelings come easily and linger when you don’t want them. Bad things happen to good people.

My question remains: if it’s so easy to bring in the negative, why is the opposite so hard? My answer remains: that it’s not.

tags: manifest destiny, positive thinking, the secret, philosophy