Good Medicine
The world's falling down around our ankles, and it doesn't look like it's gonna ease up anytime soon.........people are stressed over loss of jobs, homes, price of food …..they're worried about the future, their kids' future......nothing in the news is good......some are experiencing problems in relationships---marital, friendship, working, and other types of relationships
We’ve heard about the "Katrina of space" that could hit us.......we read
about impending marshal law, possible "WW3," about the global warming that's
not happened in the mid-west and northeast this past January of 2009, about
new diseases, famine, and on and on the list goes........it can frazzle a
body's mind for sure!
From time to time, i have to step away from being a news-hound, because a
steady diet of "the-world's-speeding-to-hell-
I have to step away to get myself back on a more even keel.......I'm no good
to anyone if I'm stressed, mentally/spiritually exhausted, as I’m sure many
of you are. If not, then, you’re a much stronger person than I, less
affected by what’s happening in the world
That is why, when i reach that point, i turn to one of my dad's
"prescriptions" for the "mully-grubs," as he called it when i was a
kid.....one of his prescriptions was---HUMOR........find humor in as many
things as you can each day because laughter is "good for your innards," as
he would say.....of course, as i got older, that changed to "good for your
heart, your soul." But "innards" works for me,
When i was growing up and got cranky, too wound up, whatever---or, "out of
whack," as he called it, he'd make me go outside and back up against a tree
and sit until i got things out of my system and was back in balance
I hated that.........but I'd do as he said----at least it wasn't digging a
hole and lying on the ground and yelling into it......i really hated
that one
I'd be sittin' there, under the tree, picking at blades of grass, putting my
finger under a grass runner, seeing how far i could pull it before it
broke.......I'd find a bug or ant crawling around, so, I'd get a twig and
see if it would crawl up on it.......I'd look up at the leaves and squint my
eyes.....I thought that was a neat way to see things.......I'd piddle like
that for a while, then my mom or dad would call me back into the house and.
“miraculously,” I'd be back in balance again, no longer the “holy terror” I
was earlier
Of course, the "science" behind that is----I was "resting my mind," as my
dad called it, by just being in that moment and seeing things around me
(like bugs, dirt, grass, etc), without really thinking about what I was
looking at or doing
Even today, I do this when I get stressed, upset or "out of whack”
Another good "therapy" for stress or when you’re feeling overwhelmed is to
stick your hands in hot, soapy dishwater........grandmother's sage advice,
but you know what? It works! I love my modern appliances, but, when things
get hairy, I find myself filling the sink with hot soapy water and hand
washing the dishes instead of loading up the dishwasher.........like sittin'
up against a tree, it allows my mind to wander, I don't have to pay much
attention to what I'm doing.......I can pray........talk to Creator, I can
unload on Him, cry, complain, praise, whatever I need to
do................by the time the dishes are washed, I feel much better
That doesn’t mean all my problems / worries
have gone away……..it just means that I’m in a better frame of mind to deal
with things
Making a loaf of bread is another "therapeutic" method to deal with stress,
to work on or work out problems, etc .......the simple action of kneading a
lump of dough with your hands can be beneficial to the mind and Spirit
Like washing dishes, it gives me the opportunity to spend some one-on-one
time with Creator, it gives me the opportunity to think about where I am in
my relationship with Creator…… it gives me a chance to consider if I need to
change my attitudes, actions, etc.
Making bread by hand gives me the opportunity to list out loud or silently,
the things I'm thankful for, the Blessings I and my family have
received.......to voice my shortcomings (which are many), I ask for guidance
on how to be a better, more compassionate wife/mom/daughter/relative/
Hopefully, some of these things can be of benefit when things get hairy for
you, when you've become saturated with negative news and events around you.
Back up against a tree........wash dishes.........make a loaf of
bread........go for a walk.......find something to laugh
at/about.........watch old "Three Stooges" or "Abbott and Costello" movies,
or old Lucille Ball episodes........something to take your mind off the ugly
stuff, something to bring a good belly laugh, until you're back in balance
to deal with what's going on around you and in the world
A muddled mind, a tired Spirit won't do us
any good in the coming times
These things might sound simplistic, silly even, but, they work for me.
Maybe they will work for you as well
Below is a "funny" I'd like to share, in the hopes of it bringing a smile to
some of you today........something to help ease the strain of living in
today's upside-down world
Last night, my wife and I were sitting in the living room and I said to her,
"I never want to live in a vegetative
state, dependent on some machine and fluids from a bottle. If that ever
happens, just pull the plug."
She got up, unplugged the computer, and threw out my wine.
