“God gave me a brain, so I better use it.” — Shirley Johnson
The first time Shirley said this to me, she said it with a little sparkle. Like she was letting me in on a secret she had been keeping for ninety-something years. A secret that, once you really hear it, changes how you spend your days.
“God gave me a brain, so I better use it.”
Just like that. Out loud. Without irony.
This is the third of the six mantras Shirley shared with me. (If you missed the introduction to Shirley and her six mantras, you can find that story on the blog.) Of all of them, this is the one that woke me up most. Because it is so simple. And because, when I am being honest with myself, I do not always live it.
I don’t know about you, but I notice that my mind can get on autopilot. The same news loop. The same scroll. The same default complaints. Some days my brain is operating like one of those moving sidewalks at the airport, just standing while everything else moves. I am not exactly using it. I am letting it carry me.
Then I sit with Shirley…
She asks questions. Real ones. The kind that show she is paying attention. She remembers things I told her three weeks ago. She reads, she watches, she notices. She has opinions, but she holds them lightly enough to keep learning.
She talks about a book she just finished and a new word she just learned and a thought she has been turning over from a sermon she heard – at 90-something. While many of us in our 50s and 60s and 70s let our minds idle, Shirley has hers humming.
Here is what I have come to believe. The brain is not just an organ. It is a gift. And when we treat it like a gift, we use it the way Shirley does. With gratitude. With intention. With a quiet sense that this is sacred.
I am not talking about being smart. I am not talking about IQ tests or trivia nights. (Though those are fine too.) I am talking about something deeper. A way of being awake to your own life. A refusal to let the mind grow stale before the body does.
Three things have shifted for me as I sit with this mantra. I share them as my own practice, because I find that I need this as much as anyone.
1. Stay curious.
Curiosity is the antidote to a lot of things. Boredom. Bitterness. Cynicism. Aging poorly. When I stay curious, my mind keeps showing up for life. I read something I would not normally read. I ask the person in front of me a real question. I let myself be surprised. I find that my favorite people, the “Shirleys” of the world, are all curious people. It is not a coincidence.
2. Use your mind in conversation.
There is no app that replaces a real conversation. Talking, really talking, with another person is a full workout for the mind. We listen, we adjust, we remember, we connect, we play.
I have started treating my conversations differently because of Shirley:
- I show up to them.
- I put my phone down.
- I keep an open mind
- I let them stretch me by challenging my own opinions and beliefs
The mind I am hoping to have at 90 is built right now, in the conversations I am choosing to be present for.
3. Aim the mind toward good.
This one is closer to Shirley’s heart, and to mine. Our minds are powerful tools. We get to decide where to point them. Toward worry, or toward gratitude. Toward grievance, or toward possibility. Toward what is wrong, or toward what is loving. I am not pretending this is easy. But it is a daily practice. Pointing the mind toward good is one of the most underrated forms of self-care I know.
There is something quiet and beautiful underneath this whole mantra. Shirley calls her brain a gift from God. I think of it as a gift from the Power breathing through us, the same Power that breathes through all of us in different names and traditions. Whatever you call it, treating the mind as a gift changes everything. We do not waste a gift. We tend it. We say thank you with how we use it.
There is also a practical truth here. Research is clear that staying mentally engaged matters for our long-term wellbeing. Reading, learning, conversation, problem-solving, creativity, all of these keep our minds resilient. Shirley knew this without ever needing a study to tell her. She just lived it.
So here is what I am asking myself this week, and what I want to ask you.
- Where is my mind on autopilot?
- What would happen if I treated my brain as a gift today?
- What new question could I ask? What real conversation could I show up for?
- What good could I aim my thoughts toward?
This is the kind of vitality that Standing Tall is built around. Mental and emotional wellbeing is woven into how we move through our days, and into how we show up for each other. Curious minds make warmer communities. Engaged minds notice the neighbor who needs a wave. The brain we tend is also a brain that lifts the people around us.
If something in this stirred your heart, I invite you to come closer. Share this with someone who could use a curiosity nudge today. Reach out to a wise soul in your life and ask them what they are reading. And if you feel called to support our community in any way, with your time, attention, words, or a contribution, we welcome you with arms wide open.
Every awake mind we tend lights up the rest of us too.
Next week we open Mantra Four: “Surround yourself with wonderful people.” This one is a love letter, and I cannot wait to share it with you.
Until then, stay curious.
With love,
Colleen
