Dec 20 2008
On Improving Mental Health by Resting our Mind
“You have to allow a certain amount of time in which you are doing nothing in order to have things occur to you, to let your mind think.”
– Mortimer Adler
This time, in which we do nothing, could be the much enjoyed and sometimes coveted opportunity to spend in the wilderness. It could be the time we sit on a dock and gaze out to the ever-moving waters. We can spend time people-watching, sitting silently in church, or watching birds.
The key to using this time of doing nothing is to not be reading, not be working figures, not be listening to the radio, or television, and not having a conversation.
For some people the time of doing nothing may be preparation for going to sleep at night. A time when the mind wanders, clears itself, works through problems. The process then continues during sleep.
To feel a peaceful and uncluttered sense of well-being, we need this time of “doing nothing” which in fact we are really doing something very important - filing, organizing, de-fragmenting and deleting. Our mental computer works much better that way!
