The Passing Show

Sit and Know You are Sitting.

Do you ever have those days where nothing feels right—where every step seems to meet resistance and even the simplest interactions leave you unsettled?

I had one recently.

The day began with restless energy. I sat down to meditate, hoping for a little calm—but my focus was scattered. From that moment on, the tone of the day was set – tense and off-balance. Every message I received seemed laced with negativity. Every person I encountered felt like a challenge. Every thought that crossed my mind was filled with irritation. It was as though the Universe and I were totally at odds with each other.*

I asked myself: Is it others**? Or is it me?

Of course, deep down, I knew the answer.

It was the mind—my mind—trapped in one of its devilish loops. The same three thoughts hijacked me again and again, spinning like a broken record. These were old patterns, resurfacing with familiar urgency and pulling me into their drama.

But here’s the thing: I saw them. I recognized the script. And even though I couldn’t stop the thoughts, I made one clear promise to myself: I will not react. No texts. No decisions. No conversations driven by those looping thoughts. I knew that acting on them would only deepen the spiral and likely leave me with regrets.

So I waited.

And later that evening when I was totally drained, I turned to exercise—an intense spin class followed by a gentle yoga flow. I sweated. I stretched. I let the body lead where the mind could not. That’s when relief arrived.

The next morning, something had shifted. The emotional fog had lifted, and with it came perspective. I looked back at the previous day and asked myself, what was the big deal? And the answer, quietly and clearly, arrived: It was nothing permanent. Just a passing show.

That’s the truth we so easily forget when we’re in the thick of it: nothing lasts. Not the joy, not the pain, not the noise in our heads. The deep furrows carved by our old thought patterns can soften if we allow space for non-reactivity. Every time we choose awareness over reaction, those grooves get just a little shallower.

So, when the storm comes—and it will—don’t fight it. Just remember:

Be with it without trying to get rid of it.

Let the old broken record play but see it for what it is.***

Breathe through it.

Do something that you enjoy.

And most of all, remind yourself: this too shall pass.

Because it always does.

*: Over these years, I have realized that I suffer when I am not aligned with the rhythm of life. But this is what being human is—we fall into our follies even when we know the truth.

**: Deep down, we know that there are no others—we are all connected. On not so good days, we tend to overlook this ultimate truth.

***: I say to myself—I see you Mara (the God of temptations). Generally, the thought lessens its hold.

#meditation #mind #mara