Rather than a thought being a discrete object, a thought is much more like a reaction to the previous thought. This is a very bizarre and fascinating thing to see about the thinking process. It's bizarre because we don't even realize how much pushing and pulling we are doing in the thoughts space. Fascinating because when we realize this mechanism we are able to calm down our tendency to push and pull. This results in equanimity in the thought space. Resting in this neutrality/equanimity often leads to a fundamental shift in what we take ourselves to be. In short, awakening.