The magic of Popcorn Meditation

In an exploration of emotions and how they interlink, don’t push your feelings and thoughts away — examine them, one at the time.

As I wrote about a while ago, I’ve been on a journey of being less in my brain and more in the emotional realm. “That’s all fine and well,” I hear you mutter, “But how the actual ever-loving hell do you even start?” One technique I’ve found helpful is what I’ve been describing as ‘popcorn meditation.’

It works best if I’m able to carve out a fair chunk of time — a couple of hours is perfect — because following these little morsels down the rabbit hole takes a bit of time. Find yourself a comfortable spot — I like a hammock, but whatever you usually do to get yourself comfortable for a while should do the trick. Close your eyes.

Imagine a pot of oil, with a couple of hundred corn kernels in it. A merry flame is heating your pan, and as you settle in comfortably, you feel an ever-so-slight tension. The first kernel is about to pop. When it does, and the kernel transforms into popcorn in a fraction of a second, it jumps out of the pan. With your mind, grab it out of thin air. The exercise has begun.

Each kernel is a different thing. It can be an emotion. A memory. A dream you had, perhaps, or a pain…