Our unconscious mind can process 11 million bits of information in a second (Wiliam, 2006). Our conscious mind, however, can only process about 50 bits of information in a second. That is wildly fascinating to me. My name is Nathan Blankemeyer and I am greatly excited to begin working at Pacifica Counseling! Why did I start this post with a random brain factoid? Because I believe life is amazing. I believe our brains are amazing. Let me explain.
At any given moment, there are 11 million bits of information available to us. A pointless fact unless there is a practical application. Try something with me. Take a minute to notice your surroundings. What color is the floor beneath you? How does the air feel against your skin? What sounds can you hear? Life is rich with details. Colors, shapes, tones, sensations, feelings, tastes. If we take the time to pause, to stop living for tomorrow or yesterday, we gift ourselves and others our presence.
Not convinced yet? Consider two versions of the same day. In the first version, you wake up and immediately notice how tired you are. You quickly shuffle through your closet and pick out something to wear. Traffic on the way to work is awful, causing you to walk in five minutes late. The morning troubles continue into the rest of the day and you just want to get home. Your evening commute takes even longer than the morning and by the time you get home, you’re exhausted. You missed a call from your brother earlier, but you’re too tired to respond now. After a quick microwave dinner and time spent watching Netflix, you go to sleep.
In the second version of the day, you wake up and notice some birds singing outside of your window. You’re a bit tired, but you still enjoy their song. As you’re picking out your outfit for work, you remember you just washed one of your favorite shirts, which brings a smile to your face. Traffic is rough on the way to work, so you start listening to an audiobook your friend recommended to you. You arrive a few minutes late, but you still enjoy the morning air as you walk to your building. While the coffee at your work isn’t very good, you decide to try a new combination of flavored creamers, which helps. During the evening traffic, you plan out a new recipe to try when you get home. When you get home, you return a call from your brother, who informs you he is in town, so you invite him over for dinner. After dinner, you spend some time catching up before he heads home and you head to sleep.
I know you might still be skeptical. I would be. The truth is that we each have to decide all the time whether to engage or not. We need simplicity and mental breaks sometimes. Other times, though, we can get caught up in the general busyness of life. We can forget just what a miracle life is. My encouragement for you is to take a little time today to notice something beautiful.
Reference
Wiliam, D. (2006). The half‐second delay: What follows? Pedagogy, Culture & Society, 14(1),
71–81. https://doi.org/10.1080/14681360500487470(opens in a new tab)
