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How Do I Shift My Focus?
There are things I focus on that I need to shift away from.
The world is a crazy place.
Way, way outside of my control, there is tremendous madness. The distressing but unsurprising situation in Afghanistan; anti-maskers and anti-vaxxers; bizarre and surreal politics in the USA and abroad; and the ongoing pandemic and people simply not getting it.
If I spend any time at all giving these things my focus and attention, I feel unwell. Mentally, emotionally, physically, spiritually — it’s distressing, depressing, infuriating, upsetting, and all-around unpleasant.
On the one hand — I don’t want to be in the dark about what’s going on out there. On the other hand — it’s all-too-easy to fall down the rabbit hole, start doomscrolling, and be swiftly inundated with those things.
But here’s the question — do I truly need to be in the know? Does that information serve me in any way, shape, or form?
To a very specific point — yes. A little bit of knowledge of these topics helps me to choose how to vote, where to spend money or not, and if I care to join a protest, sign a petition, or so on. But all I need is the very slim, very broad strokes of the issue.