Lessons from an airport queue
What do anger, impatience, amusement and gratitude all have in common? The answer is that they are all emotions, specifically they are all emotions I witnessed whilst waiting in an airport queue the other week. My family and I were just through the airport security check and we needed to queue again to get through passport control. There were lots of people in a relatively small space. The breadth of emotions on display as people queued to get into the departures lounge was fascinating.
Some people looked angry, their cross looking faces and grumbles gave away the angry experience they were having. Some people were impatient to be kept waiting, I saw people tapping their feet, looking at their watches and standing on tiptoes to check out the progress of the queue, once again their stressed expressions and impatient body language were signs of a stressful experience. One person was talking on the phone, laughing and smiling and appeared not to notice the queue. One family were seeing the funny side of things and laughing at the comical set-up of this foreign airport with queue after queue. I on the other hand felt gratitude. Gratitude for a wonderful holiday shared with my family and gratitude for my understanding that a queue can never be the source of my emotions. A queue never has the power to make me or anyone feel happy, sad, angry, impatient or any other emotional response.
The source of our feelings can only ever come from our thinking, 100% of the time, and everyone’s thinking is unique. That is why there were so many responses to the queue in question. It never was the queue that made people feel a certain way or not. It was their thinking in relation to the queue and their judgement as to whether it was a positive or negative experience.
Understanding the simple fact that your thoughts create your experience has the potential to create a real shift in the way you see life. If you deeply understand that your unique interpretation of life’s events is a creation of your wonderful mind, you start to hold your ideas, judgements and thinking a little less seriously. Sydney Banks said “Your thoughts are like the artist's brush. They create a personal picture of the reality you live in.” When you appreciate that you are the creator of your experience you open up to fresh ways of seeing things. You realise there is no need to believe and pay attention to everything you think!
Now, it’s not to say that I don’t sometimes forget this fact and get lost in my own stressful thinking. A fundamental part of the human experience is to have an abundant supply of thoughts and subsequently have a wild array of emotions. However, when I do get caught up in my thinking it doesn’t take me too long these days to remember where my experience is coming from. When it occurs to me that I am the source of my feelings (not something outside of me) then the move towards clarity and calm starts to happen. A shift in perspective often leads to a shift in behaviour and in turn, fresh ideas and experiences start to emerge.
I believe we have everything we need to thrive, and a new experience of any situation is just one thought away. If you would like to experience less stress and more joy in your life, then please get in touch, I would love to hear from you.
Natalie King