The Mind Without Performance

During our days, much of our thinking happens around others. Even when we are alone, our minds continue to carry the outside pressures of the world. We may think about how we appear to others, if our words will be understood or how they may come across, and we think about how our actions fit into the expectations of everything around us. The mind is always performing. But when we sleep, that performance vanishes and something else occurs.

Dreams happen in a space where the mind no longer needs explanation to others. There is no audience to appeal to, no reputation to maintain, and the need to shape and reshape our thoughts in into something more “politically correct” or presentable is unneeded. The mind has the freedom to move freely through memory, emotion, and imagination.

In this space here, the Kind Rebirth space, dreams can feel surprisingly honest and authentic. Using the word authentic seems paradoxical in that many believe dreams are unreal or manifestations of subconscious thoughts that only appear when we are asleep. But the use of the word authentic is reliable because when I dream, I know that wherever and whatever it is stemming from, it’s a pattern and collection of reflections, feelings, and emotions that are unique to me.

When we are able to toss aside the constant influence and distractions of the waking world, emotions appear clearer. A person who has been quietly on our mind suddenly appears. Or a feeling we didn’t fully acknowledge earlier in the day introduces moments that feel real and vivid leading us down pathways we may not otherwise intend. This does not mean that dreams necessarily are predictive or there to provide instructions (or maybe they do). But for me, I don’t spend time trying to question the source or an underlying meaning. My goal with them is to use them as an anchor back to the feelings I have below the surface.

In those environments, where the noise is decreased significantly, the mind simply moves toward the things that it recognizes as significant and meaningful. It may revisit memories or it may create moments of connection. The ones I find most impressive are the ones that allow me to experience a feeling free of distraction.

As we wake up from a dream that tends to leave behind residual impressions, consider that it may be worth trying to remember because it occurred in a place where the mind had full freedom of expression and freedom from performance. Sometimes that freedom allows us to notice ourselves more clearly.

Stay mindful….

Rebirth