The Art of Not Boarding Every Bus: Thoughts, Distance, and the Practice of Letting Go

The Deeper Thinking Podcast

For anyone quietly learning to let thoughts pass without following every one.

This episode is a parable about thoughts, and the practice of cognitive diffusion. Through the metaphor of buses and benches, we explore what it means to notice a thought, to pause before reacting, and to choose not to follow. What begins as habit slowly becomes practice. What once felt automatic becomes something else entirely: space.

 It’s a story that models freedom within thought, shaped by the spirit of thinkers like Steven C. Hayes (cognitive defusion), Iain McGilchrist (attentional depth), and Simone Weil (attention as a moral act). The story offers no solution—only a rhythm. A way of sitting beside a thought. A way of letting it pass.

Here, diffusion is not described—it is lived. In the gentle tension between reflex and choice, something quiet unfolds: not resistance, but recognition. Not certainty, but space. Not mastery, but permission. And in that permission, a different kind of freedom begins to take shape—unforced, unnoticed, but deeply felt.

Reflections

This episode doesn't tell you how to change your thoughts. It shows you how to change your posture toward them. Here are some of the quieter truths that surfaced along the way:

Why Listen?

Listen On:

Support This Work

If this episode resonated with you and you’d like to support the ongoing work, you can do so gently here: Buy Me a Coffee. Thank you for being part of this slower conversation.

Bibliography

Bibliography Relevance

You are not your urgency. 

#CognitiveDiffusion #StevenCHayes #SimoneWeil #IainMcGilchrist #ACT #Attention #InnerFreedom #BusStopParable #TheDeeperThinkingPodcast #LetItPass #NarrativePsychology #PhilosophyOfMind