The Thought

[DISCLAIMER: It's been a long week and I'm not really feeling well at the moment, so bare with me on this one because frankly the English language is not my priority at the moment.]

It's the thought that counts right?

Even when writing a blog post, as long as I can convey to you the thought that was driving the conversation then I can consider that somewhat of a win. I would hope you agree. It's very difficult to transform what goes on in one's head into the appropriate words to another human being without completely grasping what that human being knows and understands.

Overload

If it's the thought that counts, then does having a lot of thoughts count for more? You see, I have this relentless brain and it will never stop processing and thinking and imagining about every little thing that happens in a given day. The only time where I apparently get some rest from it all is when I'm sleeping, which is only because I don't remember my dreams. There are times when I dislike this fact and others when I embrace it because let's be honest, I don't really need my subconscious to run me through post-apocalyptic realities to tell me that I'm having a hectic time in life, I can see that when I'm awake. The mental overload is dangerous because it leads to over-thinking.

Is it possible to over-think

On one hand: no. It is not possible to think beyond the limits of thinking. If I told you to think about the number 2 you could thinking about 2 apples, or the equation 6 - 4 = 2, or twins. You could go further and think about the meaning of two, having one in addition to one other, the origins of the number, of the pronunciation, and so on. None of this would be over-thinking because all you are merely doing is exhausting the limits of your knowledge in the search of everything that has to do with the number 2. Much like a search engine, you can't over search something.

On the other hand: yes. While we literally are incapable of over-thinking, we can still think more than we have to or should. Let's say I ask you for $2 from you. I might be expecting 2 one dollar bills, and that's your first thought, but then you rack your brain about 8 quarters, 20 dimes, 40 nickels and so on and so forth. You even start thinking of how you could rip out the first page of one of most prized first edition comic books because that alone is worth $2. That train of thought derailed early en route as you can see. I personally have gone down that track more times than I can recount. The what if's are the worse: "What if I asked her out? What if she said yes? What if I go to clown college?" There definitely seems to be a limit to how much someone should think about a situation, but what is just enough?

Practice makes managable

Just enough is a unique limit for every individual, but it's influenced by those around you. In all of your relationships you will gradually learn, sometimes slower than hoped for, to think to an acceptable point. This is something that I have definitely had trouble with, which is why it is part of my New Year's [resolution]. The idea for this post actually arose from dealing with my past and gaining some closure last night, a check in the win column indeed. I'm learning myself just what is enough and it's definitely bearing fruit. So how do you achieve the same? Practice. Sometimes thinking through all the variations of a problem is useful, but you just need to know the line. And of course other times you just need to take a risk and not use your head, but use your heart or some other organ instead.

Okay that last line didn't really go the way I planned, but hopefully I've painted a picture of just how powerful your thoughts can be. I think Chuck Bartowski said it best with "Go with your heart buddy. Our brains only screw things up." Your mind is a tool, but don't let it get in the way of what you want. Use it wisely and think responsibly.

Think on.

[END TRANSMISSION]