A Meaningful Meander

"There's gold in them thar hills."

I took a Sunday drive through my mind this week.

Bouncing around from thing to thing, flitting between writing and movies and articles and chapters and musings and organizing and notes for nursing facilities. It created a feeling of unease.

“I’m meandering,” I said to Fitz, who is ever present by my side. He looked at me mid-purr. “So what else is new?” his look said.

As always, I would love to hear your thoughts.

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Author’s photo: Labyrinth in Georgetown, Texas

Words have power. Use them well.

This week's word: Meander

Meander. What a whimsical word.

It’s a verb meaning to “to proceed by or take a winding or indirect course,” and “to wander aimlessly; ramble,” and “a sinuous curve, bend, or loop along the course of a stream or river.”

Coil. Snake. Twist. Wind. Drift. Roam. Saunter. Traipse.

People often meander through a conversation, which can be interesting, deep, and unexpected. Unless there’s a point to be made, when everything is said except the point, you’d say, “he meandered around it but never got to it.”

I can wile away hours through a bookstore, meandering through the aisles of books and miles of stories contained therein. I miss that. It’s just not the same to meander about through online bookstores. I guess scrolling would be one way of meandering. Not the same.

You can meander through a day, which is one of my favorite things to do, to permit myself to flow from one thing to the next. The truth is, some of my best ideas present themselves on days like that, when I wander through, yes, aimlessly.

“Meandering leads to perfection.” — Lao Tzu

I started playing with this notion in my journal. Meandering along, when I plunked an innocuous “w” in the middle of the word. It was a typo from writing too fast, but look at the sweet little gift it created.

Meander became me-wander.

Which then made me wonder.

Is it wandering aimlessly? Sure, sometimes. When there’s no specific intent or goal.

More often than not, for me, it can be wandering with too many aims at once.

But, meandering, to an artist, to a writer, to a creator? Is it aimless when there’s the freedom that comes from it? The wonder? The wonder of the wander.

There is wonder in the wander when you let go of judgment and become more open. Give yourself permission. Permission is key.

“There’s gold in them thar hills.” – Mark Twain, in The American Claimant

There’s gold to discover in the meander; treasures in the sand on the beach walk; vistas to relish on the Sunday drive, through the mind or otherwise.

How great would it be if an entire class in school were devoted to simply thinking? An hour of time just to encourage kids to learn from their own minds. Where the only recommended materials are a journal and a sketchpad.

“What’s your favorite class?”

“Thinking 101. I’m learning so much from myself.”

“Yeah, it’s my favorite too.”

Aim-full Meandering

What if you put a little purpose behind the meander? If you gave it some aim. To aim-fully meander instead of aimlessly?

It’s as simple as asking a question or stating a simple intent for the day or the time in front of you.

Deep questions can lead to deep thinking.

“What inspires me today?” “How am I living fully?” “What does my heart want?” “What did I learn from this?”

Or pick a word.

I have a bag of word cards and often pick a word at the beginning of the day, or before I go to sleep, or upon journaling. I like to think that energetically, there’s a reason I picked that particular word.

So, then it becomes a backdrop, an intent.

Then the meandering has an aim: wandering around, examining, kicking the tires, massaging, splitting open, and devouring it with a freedom from any expectation. There’s gold thar.

Purposefully wandering.

Wonder with purpose. And curiosity.

Or just enjoy the meander, the wonder of the wander, the blissfulness of the aimlessness.

Sure, focus, prioritizing, and completion are important. But that’s another post.

This one, happily, was the result of a shameless and aimless me-wandering.

“You’re exactly where you’re meant to be, meandering along a crooked path.” – Martha Beck

Something to think about.

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Journal Prompt

Prompt: Without a result in mind, allow yourself to meander with your thoughts. Easy flow stream of consciousness. Then mine the gold that bubbled forth.

Explore Abundant Creation Journals for a lovely variety of pages to record your thoughts.

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Relevant reads:

Oh, To Be Openhearted

Change the filter

Patience is a practice

I hope you have a great week filled with aimful meandering. And kindness.

With love,

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