Previously, I mentioned that the meaning of life isn't to be unhappy, either directly or as a consequence of anything else.
As discussed throughout Losing My Religions, mindfulness is a great (but not always sufficient) tool to recognize and release negative thoughts. So far, the greatest insight I've achieved through mindfulness meditation is:
Thoughts Think Themselves.
(This is also an insight that follows from fully recognizing and internalizing that everything is just physics / chemical reactions. Everything is determined, so how can there be a "thinker"? But actually "seeing" [sic] thoughts think themselves while meditating is really quite powerful, IMO.)
This profound and important point is made quite clearly in the title of a children's book: Your Mind Makes Thoughts Like Your Butt Makes Farts.
This is simply and literally true. Thoughts Think Themselves.
But it is also pretty profound on other levels as well. For example: You can have a disease that affects your intestines (e.g., Crohn's) or your brain (depression).
Another example: Your thoughts and your farts depend on what you consume. Eat spicy refried beans all day and your farts will be different than if you had eaten oatmeal. Consume Fox News and Twitter all day and your thoughts will be different than if you read a good (yet free!) book. (Although to be honest, this would be a better book.)
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