It's good to lose your mind

It's easy to forget how amazing our one precious life really is. 
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It's easy to forget that we are on a rock spinning in space, that is fuelled by the sun and dances with the moon. We forget that the stars we see in our night sky existed light years ago. We forget to marvel at the fact that no two sunsets are the same, that we are each born unique, one-of-a-kind, with DNA signatures all of our own. Some may even say it's miracle! I think they could be right. When your stop and think about it, it really is nothing short of amazing. Don't you think? ​

What is also amazing (in the not so good way) is our ability to lose sight of the magic of our unique existence when we're wrapped up in the day-to-day. Rushing from one thing to the next, on autopilot, we can become lost in our mind's noisy yet hollow busy-ness.

It's funny how when someone breaks away from a stock-standard rat-race life and chooses to follow their bliss that people may think they've lost their mind. The answer is yes s/he probably has, but is that a bad thing? 

As with all living things, we crack when we're under too much pressure – when we have more on than we can bear – dealing with the daily grind, constantly pushing yourself, hustling, streamlining, it's so hugely cerebral. So it's not surprising that too much of this day after day, year on year can make you lose your mind.

However, we're still surprised when people hit the eject button and do something radical like quit their high flying job or bark at their family like a banshee for no apparent reason or sell up and leave the country. 'S/he's lost her mind' they say.

There's a liberation in unshackling oneself from an autopilot existence. Daring to step beyond the universe of our self-perpetuating minds with reckless abandon to embrace a more fulfilling reality is expansive and exciting. Images of driving towards a wide horizon and sailing into the sunset come to mind. 

As to what this looks like, it's different for different people. Whether it's plucking up the courage to try something new where no-one knows you, finally booking that bucket-list trip, embarking on a career sea change or buying your dream car or sailing off into the sunset, they all represent choosing a new vehicle through life. A vehicle in which the heart is in the driver's seat, with the sergeant major mind tossed in the boot under those annoying 'should haves'.

So go ahead and lose your mind, pursue those dreams that make your heart sing and don't die wondering. I've finally signed up for that yoga teacher training course I've been fantasising about.

Don't mind if I do.