Patterns
13 August 2024 We think of our mind as having separate parts -
even going so far as to talk about separate minds.
Conscious,
Unconscious.
These parts of ourselves are not disconnected.
There are ancient patterns that preceded us as mammals.
These parts like to lie in the sun,
soaking up warmth.
These patterns don't understand anxiety or the abstractions we have created for ourselves.
Some call this the "unconscious" mind -
its thoughts are simpler,
more rudimentary images and reactive emotions.
Imagine giving the task of writing your autobiography to this nonverbal part of yourself.
That is what you do when you dream.
Another set of patterns is all about looking of patterns and making sense - if this is possible.
We find the most tenuous connections,
filling in blanks and calling our actions logical.
In a world of chaos,
these actions could be seen as laughable.
The older patterns are affected by these later ones.
When we dream our minds will often try to continue what they were doing during the day.
Those efforts to make sense are passed to brain structures that do not operate on logic -
but on imagery and more basic sensations.
When we awaken,
we attempt to make sense of these dreams,
but they are beyond interpretation,
because they weren't created with the interpreting part of ourselves.
Imagine someone who had never seen 21st Century societies,
trying to go back to the tribal group and explain them.
Now imagine that person was four.
That is the interaction between the parts of your mind.
The child needs to be given affection,
cared for,
acknowledged,
met on their own terms.
Only then will we begin to come to peace with our night-time selves.
Aroha nui,
