What You Think About When You Want to Feel Alive
“The mind is its own place, and in itself
Can make a Heaven of Hell, a Hell of Heaven.”
— John Milton, Paradise Lost
Our thoughts can uplift or unravel us. A wandering mind, research shows, is often an unhappy one. But when we direct our thoughts toward meaning, hope, or beauty, we come home to ourselves.
So ask yourself:
What thoughts help me feel alive—especially during hard times?
One powerful thought might be:
“This is painful… but I am handling it, and I will continue to handle it.”
That’s not denial. It’s a grounded kind of hope. Our internal narrative can shift our experience, even when the outside world doesn’t.
Here are some simple ways to support enlivening thought:
Now ask:
What story am I telling myself about who I am and what’s possible?
A Parable:
In a small Somersetshire village, a cobbler had a recurring dream—three nights in a row—telling him to go to London Bridge, where he would find something to his advantage. He made the journey and waited for days with no result. Just as he was about to give up, a stranger approached and laughed, saying he had dreamed of a treasure under an apple tree in a Somersetshire orchard—but he hadn’t bothered to act on it.
The cobbler realized the orchard described was his own. He rushed home, dug beneath the tree, and found a pot of gold. Later, his son translated the Latin on the pot:
“Look under, and you will find better.”
And indeed, digging deeper, they found even more treasure.
The gold we seek may not lie in far-off lands—but beneath our own feet, in the orchard of our lived experience. Sometimes it takes an outward journey to discover the treasure within.
Closing Reflection: The ART of Living
Like a well-rooted tree drawing water from the soil, we become more alive when we consciously practise the ART of Living:
These aren’t abstract ideas. They are lived, embodied, and grounded in your ordinary, extraordinary life. They are the orchard the cobbler returned to—the one you already stand in.
“Look under, and you will find better.”
So may you dig into the soil of your own story—through the creative ways you act, relate, and think—and find gold there.
Steve Runciman is a clinical psychologist in private practice. He works with individual adults and couples to bring out their best hopes for life, drawing on their own wisdom, strengths, and progress to shape the future they desire.
📞 0484 870 634 | 📧 srunciman@iinet.net.au | 🌐 steverunciman.com.au
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