Henry David Thoreau

From Sounds
(Walden)
"They were not time subtracted from my life, but so much over and above my usual allowance. I realized what the Orientals mean by contemplation and the forsaking of works."

I am a person who believes very strongly in meditation as well as working hard to accomplish what you must accomplish. I set aside time on a weekly basis in order to do something that allows me to get lost in my thought. Some things that allow me to drift into a vivid world within my imagination are: hiking, walking, lying down in the grass, looking out a window at birds, and listening to classical music... just to name a few. I have always been a person who could get lost in deep thought for hours. In fact... I am sometimes unable to be alone because of the chatter in my mind. I have to set aside time in my daily life in order to let my mind drift off and do what it needs to do in order for me to re-focus on the other things that consume me... such as school. I have noticed that when I do not take the time to meditate I am not as productive as I could be.
Sometimes I feel as if I am on both ends of the spectrum because I am a very focused and hard working person but I still NEED to let my mind take over and become a scattered mess. Maybe that is just what the brain needs in order to be as focused as I must be. I have never met a person who can sit down and study for hours and hours at a time without a break and remained focus and I have never met a person who can spend as much time alone as I can. I guess the two extremes need one another in order to be flourish.
I wonder what would happen if more people took the time to drift off and succumb to meditation for a few hours a week. Would that entirely unproductive time lead to more productivity in the long run? Could this be the secret to success? I think more people have realized the power of letting your mind wander without even realizing it. For example, I always see students in the library lift their heads from their studies and gaze out of the window as if they had never seen the outdoors before in their lives. It seems as if the productivity drives them to meditation.
The brain is too dynamic for me to pick apart. One thing that I know is that it needs its own time away from the structured forces of our society. It needs time to bathe in the sunlight and drift of into thoughts of days in the past and days to come. I will not deny my brain of this need... this inherent desire to take a break. I will leave now to take my brain for an adventure and sit on my balcony and simply let my mind take over.

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