BACK-AND-FORTHING

A friend sometimes speaks disparagingly of those who fairly frequently change their minds -- what she calls “back-and-forthing” -- and while I agree that it can create confusion in lives, I also have seen its usefulness, even when it’s done quixotically and suddenly. I see this impetuous tendency in nature, the way winds work one way and then another, the way the weather does its raining one day and then dries things out with some waterless days – and if it’s a good way for nature, then it might make sense for me. After all, when I make a decision, it’s based on the smallest evidence conceivable – the slight ideas in my very slight mind – so why shouldn’t I change my mind when new ideas materialize? The weather works that way, shifting smoothly when conditions change, so why shouldn’t I? Truth is, our minds are continuously changing, whether we realize it or not. Like leaves in the fall, thoughts are everlastingly falling through us, transforming our minds as comprehensively as autumn leaves transform the countryside. Our minds naturally participate in “back-and-forthing” from moment to moment, and so do winds and weather, and so do I, fairly intuitively and (lucky for me) cheerfully.