Is it just me, or do our minds get cluttered and full of mucus and snot and gunk so thick that it makes it hard to breathe?

Maybe that was a gross metaphor, but it gets the job done.

It is almost as if our minds are so clogged up but they are still moving and running and trying to sludge through the muddy mess.

It's gross, it's difficult, it's all around not fun.

But sometimes it must be done.

Sometimes we need to take the time to clear a pathway through the gunk in order to continue our lives. The gunk has to be expelled in some healthy way in order to make room for new growth and development to occur.

But gosh is it hard to expel.

And sometimes when it most needs to be out of our way, it is sitting right there, all globby and gross and in the way. You know, like when you have a job interview, or a wedding to attend, or homework to do, or any other really pertinent task.

Then what?!

We can't always freeze our lives and deal with the gunk, unfortunately. But, I am here, like a midnight TV salesperson to offer a temporary solution to your temporary mind-paralysis-like-state: use a shoebox.

I kid you not.

Imagine a shoebox in your head. I like to imagine this bright pink Barbie shoebox I had when I was little. Picture it, describe it, smell it, do all of the things. All of the senses.

Got it?

Now, scrape out some gunk, and place it inside of the safely-lined-gunk-protected shoebox and put it up on a shelf in your closet.

Take deep breaths, and recognize that the shoebox is right there, right in your closet, right there full of your gunk that you need to deal with.

Fabulous news: you don't have to deal with that gunk right this second. You can go do the thing that you need all of your mental capacities for and when you're done you can return to your shoebox. The gunk can go straight back into your head, and you can mull over and process it as much as necessary.

It won't disappear, but it won't distract. Your shoebox is always there, ready to hold your gunk temporarily. It isn't a fix, but it is a band-aid.

It keeps you safe for a short period of time until you have time to tend to the wound.

So remember your shoebox, (heck, even make a list to put in a real shoebox. Whatever floats your boat,) and keep on doing life. All of it. You can. You really, truly can.