I always thought that I naturally lean to the right side of my brain. Iāve used it as a happy excuse for my less grounded conduct on countless occasions. ReadingĀ Penney Peirceās featureĀ in the Cygnus Review, though, I began wondering if, somewhere along the lines, Iāve become a bit of a right side āwannabeā.
Thereās no doubt I drift over to the āfree-flowing consciousnessā of the right side, particularly when writing – so sending you these emails every week is a great means of prompting my thoughts in this direction (thanks for that!). Recently though, a large chunk of my time is spentĀ grappling with practical matters. Iām looking for moreĀ workĀ to pay the bills, trying to get aĀ community projectĀ off the ground, searching for the right home because the one Iām renting is on the market ā¦ lots of common concerns to keep the left brain in dominance. Thatās a majority of my time that Iāve been disregarding the right side of my brain. In sheer panic Iāve replaced myĀ intuition, creative thinking and emotional connection with critical thinking, rigid logic and making plans after plans. And itās not like this will have been the first time Iāve had to pull up my boot straps and go left. The thing is that Iām not at all what I would expect a left side thinker to be – Iām certainly useless at maths and, although I tend to start out with a plan, I end up flitting about like a fairy!
Now, Iām all for balance and of course the left side of our brain serves us well in practical matters, and much more besides – for example, I am grateful to know that the left side of my brain is up to learning Swedish (job well done! āJƤttebraā!). And the man I love and enjoy living with is a left side thinker ā¦ so itās not like Iām anti left brain thinking! I simply recognise now how easy it is to get stuck on the left side in this current, demanding way of life we tend to set for ourselves – which can result in us binding ourselves so tightly in pragmatism that we forget toĀ allow for happiness.
Just acknowledging this must have opened up some channels to the right side of my brain because suddenly I noticed one of thoseĀ signpostsĀ that life gifts us with when weāre trying to find our way. The signpost came in the form of an advert for a cottage to let. Itās in an area that Iāve been intensely drawn to, since moving back home to Wales, but Iāve dismissed it because itās ātoo out of the way and impracticalā. I might have approached this signpost with the usual rationalised perception had I not read the Cygnus Review and snapped out of it. Instead, the right side of my brain asked āyes but what if …ā. Responding with feelings and creative questioning has led me onto great possibilities which could make for a positive redirection in mine and my families life. I have all sorts of light bulbs pinging above my head now, with a new picture of my situation being formed, along with ideas and hope.
Iām going to throw myself into the bookĀ Leap of PerceptionĀ and take a more prolonged walk on the right side. It will be good to have the tools to prevent fear from taking over, and to be able to maintain a balance. Itās a book that goes hand in hand withĀ TheĀ Endorphin Effect, especially as the use of the right brain releases endorphins. Cygnus Books think so too which led them to this weeks special offer. If you buyĀ Leap of PerceptionĀ with the Endorphin EffectĀ bookĀ and/orĀ CD, before midnight on 10th July 2013, you don’t have to spend a penny on UK postage. Just quote āRight On!ā as a gift voucher when ordering.
Before I go … hereās a really interesting video about how the two sides of the brain work. It’s a talk by neurosurgeon Jill Bolte Taylor who discovered nirvana when a stroke took her way into the right side of her brain. She wrote a book ‘Stroke of Insight‘ and I can see that Cygnus Books have it in their online store. I hope it inspires you as much as it did me.
Watch Jill Talyor
One love,