Navigating the Tumultuous Sea

Aerik Knox
Sep 6, 2018 · 5 min read

The world is full of information. So much that our brains filter out most of it in order to keep us from becoming overloaded. In fact, we only retain about 10% of what we see in an entire day, according to data from the National Highway Institute.

Qualities of mindfulness.

Of course, no system is perfect and the human brain is no exception. Even with most of that information being filtered out, we can still find ourselves feeling overwhelmed by everything in our day-to-day. Social media only fuels this problem, creating a simultaneous issue of feeding us more information than humanity has ever had access to before, and also exploiting our innate desire to discover new things. In simpler terms, we are addicted to information and there is literally more of it at our disposal than we could ever possibly consume.

The effects of this issue are both obvious and not. You may have noticed stories (or have experienced them yourself) of people “quitting social media” in an effort to escape the noise of the interconnected world. This is usually because the stress of seeing upsetting content all over Facebook and Twitter every day is making us mentally sick. Often, those who become frustrated with the bombardment of negativity will vent their anger online, directing it towards individuals and groups alike, or attacking whole social constructs altogether like political correctness. These are the obvious signs that social media is causing us grief, but some are more subtle and equally troubling.

Screen addiction is an underlying problem because of its contribution to the vicious circle, bringing us back to the same places that make us miserable again and again. The larger issue though is access to information, which has multiple levels. The first is the portrayal of information by the media. The fact is that journalists, and the companies they work for, are all presenting the information they want you to see, the way they want you to see it. This means that whenever you go looking for an article or video to prove a point that you made, the one you pick will always be one that supports your pre-existing thoughts and opinions. This phenomenon is called confirmation bias, and it is inescapable. We all have it. What makes it so hard to deal with is that looking for information which confirms what we already believe is not only incredibly easy, but it’s also programmed into our brains, making it very challenging to change someone’s mind and, in the process, tackle sensitive topics.

The second piece to this problem is due to the distribution of wealth across socioeconomic groups. White families are the most educated and the least impoverished overall, and because of their wealth and status they have greater access to – and control over the distribution of – information. Ironically, even though it is primarily white people with control over how information is distributed, it is still a constant struggle for most to determine whether a news clip is telling the whole story. Even with that power in their hands, the world is still plagued with uncertainty.


This is the tumultuous sea we must navigate every time we connect ourselves to the digital world. We are all just treading water, trying not to let the waves swallow us up.

This is where meditation and mindfulness become invaluable to us. One provides us a framework to better navigate the expanse of deceptive waters and the other a shelter to rest and wait out the emotional storm brewing overhead.

Meditation is my island sanctuary. Whenever I become frustrated or anxious about anything, ten minutes of deep breathing and focused inward reflection allow me to find my composure again. This daily ritual is the reason why I can continue to expose myself to things that many others are sick of; issues like poverty, discrimination, political corruption scandals, police brutality, wealth inequality, environmental catastrophes and the looming threat of irreversible climate change. Taking a rest on my island is how I manage to go back out and face these things every day, instead of holding my breath and waiting for the waves. To meditate is to wash the seawater from your mind and body.

However, meditation is only part of the practice of mindfulness. To be mindful means to be consciously aware of and acknowledge the present moment, as well as any feelings, thoughts or opinions you may have of that moment, and learning to separate them from each other.

The practice of maintaining a nonjudgmental state of heightened or complete awareness of one’s thoughts, emotions, or experiences on a moment-to-moment basis.

- Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary

Too often, we forget ourselves. We let emotion dictate our responses to delicate situations and we overreact, or say things we don’t mean. We get defensive and we make accusations. We don’t listen; we talk over each other. Nothing gets solved this way. If anything, reacting emotionally to a lot of these situations makes things worse for the people who are directly affected by them, and if we aren’t paying attention — because we’re all too busy yelling at each other — the storm and the waves will swallow us all.

If meditation is an island, mindfulness is a submarine. Practicing mindfulness allows you to travel safely beneath the stormy surface of the water and see what lies beneath. To be able to calmly observe a situation is a gift, but it’s one that we can give ourselves. Learning to be mindful is a journey. It takes time, and it takes discipline. It requires you to remove yourself and your ego from the present moment and to observe things exactly as they are.

When I said confirmation bias is inescapable, that was true. It is impossible to be truly objective about anything. That said, it is possible to take the first step: admitting that our biases are not facts, and learning to accept that things are more complicated than they appear. With a mindful frame of reference and a determined attitude, it may be possible to travel deep below the tumultuous sea and discover the truth for ourselves.

Aerik Knox

Written by

Artist. Revolutionary. Chocoholic.

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