Stew. Ponder. Think again!
Bubble, bubble, simmer, simmer, splish and splash…. in the pot is this and that. All tossed in together! Add a little heat and you get a little pressure. That little bit of pressure is called cooking and soon you have stew! Everything all mixed up!
Now although that describes a pot of stew, it also pretty accurately describes when we “stew” over something. This thought and that thought creating this feeling and that feeling. They toss about, simmering away and building pressure until they “simmer” up and out into our reality – sometimes known as “stress”.
On the other hand, there’s a very similar but more positive process called “ponder”.
What’s the difference?
Pondering is thinking too, but it is directed thinking. It’s a “searching” kind of thought, a “reflective” kind of thought. Maybe it is “I wonder if I could do this?” or “If I leave now, could I do this or be there by this time”?
It’s a “wandering” kind of thought that discovers, questions, mulls things over by looking at different angles, ways, shapes, times, ability, meaning, results and opportunities.
Pondering is looking at different pieces of the puzzle and considering how they will all fit together, or maybe what pieces have to fit together first for success. If you play scrabble or Rummikub, you have different numbers or pieces, and you ponder in preparation of a move, wondering what your options are. Pondering is great for us! It’s letting our mind wander, with our eyes open, into possibility thinking – maybe with an aspect of anticipation or expectation. It lets us consider, reflect, learn, stretch and choose! We can go somewhere when we take time to ponder. It’s a gentle, conscious and more peaceful way to go into our future.
For those of us who like prayer, journaling or writing in some form, we “ponder with the pen”. Brainstorming is a high-speed kind of pondering. You just ponder real fast! You consider, think and dream a little bit. If there’s any steam created at all from this process, it becomes a source of power and energy like the steam that once powered great ships and trains – transporting goods and people, or creating. It was creative and constructive. The steam from some pressure-pots can be destructive if it explodes.
So if you are stewing over something, expand over to the “ponder” mode. It’s like taking the lid off the pot and letting the steam expand and journey beyond. It takes the pressure off, makes our journey much more enjoyable, stress free and even productive as your ponderings take you outside that stew pot. You never know what exciting plans might come about, what inventions may be created, what answers you will get or where you’ll end up!
Just as you might physically go wander somewhere, let your mind go wander and ponder – AND ENJOY THE JOURNEY!