Photo by me.

Lately, I have had trouble clearing my thoughts. With university, work, money, friendships, and many other things going on, it seems as if my mind is always going and overthinking. At the end of the day, I feel both emotionally and mentally exhausted from how much I have to deal with throughout the day. So, I recently took on the task of discovering a foolproof way to clear my head quickly and efficiently. At first, it seemed that either nothing worked, or it was unhealthy behaviour.

For instance, listening to music sometimes spurred me to think more and watching an episode on Netflix turned into binge watching and getting nothing done. Then, out of pure luck, I stumbled upon something that quieted my head.

One morning, I decided it was a beautiful day and I wanted to enjoy my morning tea outside. However, I live in downtown Adelaide, so I would have had to carry my lidless mug of Australian Afternoon tea quite a distance to get to the park. I wouldn’t have minded this but was hesitant in fear I would spill my tea everywhere (I’m a bit of a klutz). Then, I had the brilliant idea of heading up to my building’s rooftop lounge. Armed with a mug of tea and a bowl of oatmeal, I rode the elevator to the nineteenth floor. I went outside, pulled up a comfy bean bag in front of the large glass barrier, and sat down. In only a few moments, my mind seemed to have been wiped clean. I was able to clear my head while watching Adelaide from above.

Then, breakfast nineteen stories above the ground became a routine. Nearly every morning I take my teacup and breakfast up the elevator, sit down, and watch the cars, people, and birds below me. There is never anyone up there but me, so I get to revel in the sounds of the city that silences the noises in my head. I think the reason why this magical place works so well for me is the fact that I am able to get some perspective from so high up. Being far above the city, above everyone else, reminds me how small my problems really are. Although the paper I’m working on for my English class seems daunting, and my friend hasn’t texted me back in hours, and I’m worried about sticking to my budget this week because I had to get my shoes fixed, I realise that these issues aren’t massive or world-shattering. If anything, these problem are tiny, just as everything seems from nineteen stories up.