R.A.D.I.C.A.L. Thoughts
"A good cry lightens the heart." Yiddish proverb
Sometimes, I just need a good cry. During this time of year, tears seem to come more easily. I think that has to do with time crunches, and money crunches, and worries about the expectations we have for the holidays. This time of year is often cold and dark and reflective. The nights are longer and the days are shorter, and I seem to have tons more to do in those shorter hours than I can possibly get done. Plus, I'm sometimes afraid to do much reflecting for fear of reflecting on the wrong things and really breaking down. During a midlife divorce the holiday tears come more easily because of things we've lost or things we're trying hard to make work. This morning in bed, I was going over a whole litany of things I'm worried about. And even though I try not to use the phrase, "stressed out," that's exactly what I am. I'm stretched too thin. I'm out of time. I'm out of money. I'm out of good humor on occasion. Okay, what's the solution? This morning, I went into the kitchen, started the coffee, and just sat down on a stool and said, "I'll do what I can do the best I can and then not worry. I'll remember that the people are more important than the things, and that if I could give every single person I love everything I would like, and could make all the trappings of Christmas perfect, that still wouldn't guarantee happiness for me or for anyone else. I'll have my cry and then remember that I have the choice to be happy about this day rather than worried. I have the choice to shine or to whine. I have the choice to use this season to celebrate the new beginning that it is or not. To use another overworked phrase, "That's a no-brainer."
"There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven. A time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot, a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time to build, a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance ... Ecclesiastes 3:1-4
