Have you ever talked to yourself for 11 hours straight?

I did last Sunday, and surprisingly, I am still sane.

It's Sunday morning, and I am trying to mentally prepare for what would become the longest drive of my life. Mixed feelings are making their presence felt. The idea of not having another soul with me feels so strange. Little did I know that this solo experience would unfold an unforeseen internal journey.

The Unfamiliar:

As a child, I always loved having intense conversations with myself, debating and arguing on ideas. So, here I was, thrown the opportunity of traveling back from my home country all alone. Three years ago, this would have been unimaginable and crazy, but now, I was excited to take on this adventure.

My mind started with being suspicious at first, giving me stark emotions. A couple of rollercoasters and so on my journey I was.

The Flow:

Everything started with a mild sense of anxiety, being completely alone in the car. However, as I began my drive, something unexpected happened—I abruptly entered a state of flow.

It was so curious for me, as I did not expect that. Throughout the journey, this was a constant presence until I finally reached home. It was the first time I experienced such an extended period of flow, and it left me with a profound realization.

The Process:

Reflecting on myself, I often engage in deep introspection, sometimes to an extreme level. Even with all that, I always believed that meditation was one aspect which wasn't meant for me. I couldn't have been more wrong about this.

Throughout the trip, Thich Nhat Hanh's wisdom started to crystallize more and more in my mind. In "No Mud, No Lotus," he advises persistence when meditation seems intellectually ineffective. Whenever you feel there is no point in your practice, push harder, remind yourself that because of this, you need to continue. This reminded me of an expression I heard as an Agile Coach: "trust the process." In this case, having faith that, with time, meditation will lead to transformation. Listen to my heart and not my mind.

How is this valuable? You may ask.

We want things to happen fast. In our world of instant gratification, the patience to put our trust in the process is an underdeveloped skill. The need to see results fast, the quest for validation is ever present. I observed often times how people rush into judging a process with the purpose of challenging the status quo. But to ensure effective challenge, you need to reach flow, so that you can really understand it. Only then you can begin to challenge truthfully.

Flow and meditation both require practice and total trust in the process. To enter a flow state, you need your mind to not worry about the underlying process. Otherwise, suspicion will make space in your mind. Whenever you incorporate a new process in your life, there are the 3 levels of mastery (Shu Ha Ri). Initially, it's more about imitating, which will feel at times artificial, trying to mimic the desired state. With time, it becomes more of an experimental phase. While the ultimate level is a genuine experience of the flow and the transformative effect of it.

Be still. Be at peace.

Meditation requires trusting the process. Subsequently, to have drive in your life, you need flow, which requires trusting the process. Only when you rest your mind in that space, you can reach mastery.

As we strive to experience flow in various aspects of life, trusting the process will bring forth peace of mind, setting you on your journey. Just like Thich Nhat Hanh's teachings, the journey of discovery stretches far beyond what we can see and intellectually understand.