Open Mind
Lambertville. This well-preserved, quiet, historical NJ town surrounded by various antique stores, old-time barber shops, landmark buildings, and even this old-school cute little luncheonette called Snaddon’s, which at first sight became one of our favorite breakfast spots, sometimes make us feel like we are traveling back in time…
When you add to this equation the beautiful landscape with all shades of green, nature and wilderness of the Hunterdon and Bucks County, together with the serenity of Delaware River’s soothing water, time really slows down here.
When I contemplate on this, I can’t help but think of the body-mind connection and how this relationship affects our overall state of happiness and wellness. Physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually.
You may have heard or watched this documentary called ‘What the bleep do we know’ some years ago. In this documentary, one of the interesting piece I remember vividly was Masaru Emoto who pinpointed the relationship between water and our thoughts and words.
With evidence, he showed that:
if thoughts and words are directed at water, the water crystals undergo some changes depending upon whether the words or thoughts are positive or negative. Positive thoughts lead to changes in the water crystals that make some of them look like snow flakes while negative thoughts make the water look distorted. Positive thoughts not only affect water, it can change our entire world, especially when you consider we are 55% – 78% water, and mother earth is covered with 60% of water.
Now keep this in mind…
I have recently come across this book called “Counter Clockwise” written by an award-winning social psychologist Ellen Langer. She asks the question:
If we could turn back the clock psychologically, could we also turn it back physically? Her scientific research helps her to find an answer: Opening our minds to what’s possible, instead of clinging to accepted notions about what’s not, can lead to better health at any age.
Her landmark 1979 “counterclockwise” study in which elderly men lived for a week as though it was the year of 1959 and seemed to grow younger—and important works by other researchers, Langer proves that the magic lies in being aware of the ways we mindlessly react to cultural cues. Langer writes,
“The men in the experimental group were told not merely to reminisce about this earlier era, but to inhabit it—to make a psychological attempt to be the person they were 20 years ago.”
As part of this experiment, the men's outfit adapted 1959 fashion with clothing from the era, and they talked about things that are defining those years: Johnny Unitas, Wilt Chamberlain, the first U.S. satellite launch, Jimmy Stewart movies, etc. The results of the experiment were quite interesting: the men showed improvements in overall health, particularly in dexterity, posture, and even in eyesight. Some compared photos and thought the men looked younger.
In this interesting NY article and interview titled "What if Age Is Nothing but a Mind-Set?", Bruce Grierson, by referring to Langer's work, puts:
If people could learn to be mindful and always perceive the choices available to them, Langer says, they would fulfill their potential and improve their health. Langer’s technique of achieving a state of mindfulness is different from the one often utilized in Eastern “mindfulness meditation” — nonjudgmental awareness of the thoughts and feelings drifting through your mind — that is everywhere today. Her emphasis is on noticing moment-to-moment changes around you, from the differences in the face of your spouse across the breakfast table to the variability of your asthma symptoms. When we are “actively making new distinctions, rather than relying on habitual” categorizations, we’re alive; and when we’re alive, we can improve.
Ms. Langer's work, by utilizing placebo effects, shows that there is a direct connection between our body and mind. And, as long as we become curious about what thought we knew, our surroundings may become more interesting. And with that expectation of each moment being unique, we become more alive. I think this is also one of the reasons the term "Respond, don't react" has gained so much attention and popularity in recent years.
Now, if we turn the mirror to ourselves, how would YOU like to trick your mind to become younger, healthier, smarter and more alive?
I would like to end this article by one of my all-time favorite commercials...
Open. Mind. Set. Go, folks!
Shoshin is a concept in Zen Buddhism meaning “beginner’s mind”. It refers to having an attitude of openness, eagerness, and lack of preconceptions when studying a subject, even when studying at an advanced level, just as a beginner in that subject would.