I awoke early. The darkness outside seemed already to be lifting slightly while the darkness in my mind descended, and I knew that sleep would elude me for the rest of the night. My gloomy mood injected tumultuous thoughts into my mind and I struggled to stop the onslaught. After about an hour of meditating, with some limited success, it was clear that, if I wanted to find my way back to a peaceful reality, I would need a stronger solution. I strapped on my running shoes and headed out into the rapidly brightening morning light. The day was mostly cloudy, with angry looking clouds leering down at me, their bottoms heavy with grey. But there were glimpses of clear blue sky interspersed among the clouds as if the sky was a giant jigsaw puzzle with a few missing pieces letting the blue background peek through. The sky mirrored my mind; for the angry clouds weren't just floating in the sky, but they were floating through my mind as well. The great thing about running is if you want to focus on your breath, running will force the issue. Soon, my attention became more focused on my breath, my pace, the beauty of this moment. This was a trance that pushed out the demons of the past and the future that tried to ensnare me like the demon Vecna ensnares the children of Hawkins. The clouds in my mind lightened and let a tiny sliver of sunlight through. The sky obediently mirrored my rapidly improving mood and ol’ sol herself made an appearance. Vecna was vanquished, at least for this morning.
We get trapped in clouds of our own making don't we? But they are illusions. Vapor. Temporary. It's simple (but not always easy) to banish them with the bright fusion fire of your attention, just as the sun melts the anger out of those leering clouds. For they were no longer jeering me, but were cheering me on. My silent witnesses to my achievement of both body and mind. The entire world, reality itself, was now at peace. It's going to be a great day.