Also known as the thinking mind, free will resides in our conscious mind. It can accept or reject any idea. Think about how quickly children form beliefs. How many adults don’t like dogs because a dog jumped on them as a young child and scared them half to death? Because of that one incident, they believe that all dogs are going to hurt them. Unless one takes the time to examine this belief, they’re going to live with this irrational fear their entire life.
The conscious mind also reads and interprets the stimuli taken in from our five senses: sound, sight, taste, touch, and smell. Because we think in pictures, anytime one or all of our five senses is triggered, we instantly create a picture in our mind. This is much like an antennae or satellite dish that transmits signals to your television set. Your conscious mind is the gateway through which external stimuli travel to your subconscious mind. Certain feelings occur depending on the interpretation you give to these external stimuli. Does the smell of fresh baked apple pie take you back in time to Sunday dinners? What about the feel of the pine needles on a Christmas tree? What about the time you found a new bicycle or red wagon under the tree? Do you feel positive or negative energy in your body? As these memories come to you, your conscious mind actually has the power to accept the thoughts and feelings from your subconscious that you want to keep. If you don’t like the feelings, you can reject the thoughts and change them … but only if you know how.
Tell us about something that brings back memories – either good or bad. We’d love to hear!
