I have such a hard time quieting my mind during our sessions. I try to hold blank space, but my thoughts keep pulling me away. How do I get better at that?

Some people find it easier than others to bring their mind to a state of rest — whether that's for a meditation practice or for their time on the table receiving craniosacral therapy. I myself have a hard time with this. The thoughts in my mind can be just as busy as the doings of my life, flitting from one thing to the next, not even seeming related half the time.

Clients often mention spiritual practitioners they've heard about — Buddhist monks come up the most — who can sit in silent meditation for long periods, completely emptying their minds of thought. This can be inspiring and, at the same time, deeply frustrating. If we're trying to go from A to Z — from our usual busy, scattered minds to meditation master — we're going to stall before we even get started. It feels impossible, so it becomes a reason to not even try.

But what if we just try to go from A to B?

One of my teachers offers this reframe: it's not about clearing out all of your thoughts until your mind is completely blank. It's about giving your mind a focus. One thought to return to. Something that holds meaning for you. Something that carries a sense of truth or steadiness.

For some people that's a teaching from their spiritual path. For others it's a guiding principle, a value, a line from a book that has stayed with them. Whatever it is, it becomes an anchor point — something to come back to when the mind wanders.

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I have one of these myself, and it came from an experience I've never forgotten.

I was traveling by plane on a completely overcast day. Heavy clouds covered the sky — no blue, no sun, nothing. As the plane climbed, we moved up through the clouds and came out the other side. And there it was: brilliant sun, open blue sky, and all those clouds spread out below us.

What struck me wasn't just the beauty of it. It was the sudden, obvious recognition: the sun had been shining the whole time. It never stopped. The clouds were just in the way of my seeing it.

That image has stayed with me for years. The sun is still shining. On hard days, in difficult moments, when my mind is restless or my heart is heavy, I come back to that. It's a reminder that something steady and true is always there, even when I can’t see it.

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That's the kind of focusing thought I'm talking about.

So here's what I invite you to try, whether as a short meditation practice or during your next session on the table:

​Choose a thought that holds meaning for you. A guiding principle. Something that feels true and steady, even when life doesn't.

When you settle in, let that thought be where your mind rests. Hold it gently. Think about it. Let it open up.

And when your mind wanders — because it will, because that's what minds do — simply notice. Watch the thoughts move through, like clouds moving across the sky. And then return. Come back to your focusing idea — back to what you know is shining, even now.

​You don't have to be a meditation master. You just have to be willing to keep returning.
And remember...the sun is still shining ☀️