Have you ever run into a store to pick up a few items and, because you reason it’s just a few items, you don’t bother with a cart? I think we’ve all done that. I did it recently with a bag of dog food. It was a 20lb bag of dry dog food and although it was a little heavy, I figured I didn’t need a cart; I could just carry it to the checkout. When I got to the checkout, however, only a couple lanes were open and the lines were rather long. So, there I stood with my dog food, and with each minute that passed by, that bag of dog food increased in weight. Not literally, of course, but the longer I held it, the heavier it felt. By the time it was my turn to check out, that 20lb bag of dog food felt like it weighed 50lobs. It felt wonderful to set it down, if only for a few minutes.
Problems are a lot like that bag of dog food. We carry them around with us everyday and we don’t think anything of it, but the longer we hold them, the heavier they become. Worries seem to multiply like rabbits until that one thing on your mind becomes twenty things.
But how do we set them down? Well, it’s different for everyone, but some easy ways to lighten our mental loads include exercise, music, meditation, writing, taking walks, or just talking to someone about what troubles you.
So, take a few minutes to set your worries down and rest, if only for a little while. Because the burdens we carry inside weigh just as much as those we carry on the outside.
