Pain is a choice. And if you learn this, your life will change.
Not the first sting.
Not the raw sensation.
But the second wave—your resistance, your reaction, your refusal to feel it.
That part? That’s optional.
I didn’t learn this in a book.
I learned it while sitting cross-legged on a cushion, wanting to scream.
Day three of a five-day silent retreat.
My shoulders felt like they’d fused into concrete.
Every second of meditation was a battle.
I tried everything—stretching, rolling, twisting, adjusting.
Temporary relief. Then more pain.
The harder I fought, the worse it got.
I was trapped in a loop: tension, reaction, frustration, repeat.
And then something strange happened.
I stopped.
Not because I wanted to.
Because I couldn’t keep fighting.
The big idea hit me like a bell in an empty temple:
Pain multiplies when you resist it.
Suffering isn’t the sensation—it’s the story.
So I stopped trying to fix it.
I sat, still and unflinching.
And I said: “Welcome, pain. You’re allowed to be here.”
I didn’t serve it tea.
I didn’t roll out a mat and ask it to stay.
I simply let it exist.
And something shifted.
Relief didn’t come from escape.
It came from expansion.
I stopped letting the pain fill my awareness.
Instead, I noticed the sound of birds.
The breath in my lungs.
The warmth in my hands.
The pain shrank—not because it left, but because it was no longer the whole story.
It was just one wave in a sea of sensation.
You can use this everywhere.
Physical pain.
Emotional mess.
Anxious loops.
Awkward conversations.
All of them.
Step one: notice your resistance.
Step two: welcome the feeling.
Step three: expand your awareness.
Step four: stop serving it tea.
Let it stay, but don’t let it rule.
You’ll feel a kind of quiet power.
Not because you conquered pain.
But because you stopped being afraid of it.
You gave up the war.
You became space itself.
Try it next time life gets loud:
Don’t fight the feeling.
Welcome it.
Let it float in your awareness like a leaf on a lake.
Watch what happens.
Recap:
Pain isn’t the enemy.
Your resistance is.
So:
- Welcome what hurts.
- Expand your awareness.
- Stop giving attention to what doesn’t deserve it.
This isn’t passivity.
It’s precision.
It’s peace by practice.
And if you want to live like that—start with your attention.
Conclusion:
Most people overthink their productivity.
They resist their reality.
They try to optimize away discomfort.
But real clarity—and the power to be more productive—comes from letting go, not layering on.
That’s the philosophy behind monkwit.
It’s not a list of hacks.
It’s not a cult of control.
It’s a reminder: stop managing your mind like a spreadsheet.
Capture what matters. Let go of the rest.
You don’t need more structure.
You need more space.
Start over. Suffer less. Act when it matters.
That’s the point.
Not just productivity.
Presence. And that’s how to change your life.
