A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words

When an artist begins a piece of artwork often it is to find the story behind what’s there. Particularly if it is from the imagination and not reproducing what is seen before them. There is a daring swish of color and shape done withing this particular piece. At this point it is simple. It appears to be a large cement wall and open water beyond it. The sun shines behind morning mist. The troubling spots? The fuzziness of a dark blue edge to the cement wall. How important is this fuzziness visually when all else seems to work? This is when imagination kicks in and an artist begins to create something more fitting to the story they see. It will need to be delicate fine work. A ladder down to what a landing of some kind. Something on a smaller scale so to keep the bigness of the cement wall. And what about the rusty red color? Or does the artist do anything at all? It could be left to the eye of the viewer to create what he or she may see. In the distance there is a land mass to go to. Dark water meets light water. The cement wall however cast no shadow from that morning glow. The question then is does it need enhancing to become realistic?

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~Thoughts of the day~

We work hard to repress what we don’t want to think about when thoughts keep coming back. The mind is predicting what it thinks we want. Really? Well, thinking “I don’t want that!” Does not easily stop the mind from its insistence. Why can’t I stop thinking about what hurts me?

Because it hurts! And there is so much memory lining up behind that hurt, they multiply. We do not think a lot about why we are thinking what we do. We do not necessarily realize that the mind is pull from a stack of ideas that are filed away. A similar sense or thought is felt, and the mind calls up accordingly what it has available. Feel a little down? Oh, maybe it is this or that? What is needed. “Our sensory stimuli does not, in its self, except under unusual circumstances determine whether or not we pay attention to them. We, ourselves, do.” We are driven to understand what we think about on some level. “In fact novel stimuli of great intensity (which is usually gated are not gated) will be gated if they do not conform to the nature of expected sensory inputs. (Stehen Harrod Buhner)

In other words, we notice, in the visual field around us, those things that fit into our paradigm, our template. Those things in the fields around us that are not deemed relevant to the template we are using are not noticed.” In other words, the brain works in this way that we “gate” or choose what we want to go with as the experience of thought. The mind is making a suggestion due to what is being triggered. We do not have to pick it up and run with it!

So, what happens to these thoughts if we done pick them up and run with them? We don’t have to solve the questions, or we don’t have to do something with the thoughts and feelings. Letting go of such thoughts is the answer. Letting go is not easy. It is a matter of shutting the gate. Changing the subject on the self. Doing so pushes these thoughts back where they are not called up when you replace them with new experiences. The old falls into the past and makes room for the present.

There are experiences that hurt and are beyond what we can’t control or change. It feels like such a struggle to overcome such things. Health and happiness will not happen if you do not change things up. Often, we fall into listening to the mind.

We simply need to understand the mind brings up what it thinks we want. When we say no to those thoughts the mind will respond to what is not wanted. It does not good to argue the points you may have with the mind. There is one you! Not another person to argue with. Stacking up pros and cons all day will not get you anywhere, fast! You will stay stuck in a loop. I did this for years. My habit was to understand my experiences. My personality was fighting with what was best for me. It was not until I realized this that I actively made changes. We do use a template of sorts to go about our daily lives. In other words, we want our days to go a certain way. I like to get up, have coffee, and sit down to write this blog as the sun comes through the windows, while the house has that morning quiet. I am fresh in my thinking. Then, I need to eat, dress for the day. Move before I sit again. Chores? The budget? The studio and being creative? Fun with a friend? Reaching out to others so life is interesting? Planning a day does not require making a to-do list although they have their place. breaking old cycles keep the brain on its toes!

Pejj Nunes 6/1/2026