Yesterday, a good friend chose to send me this good thing to focus on:
It’s a good thing that soolooka created that, so that Vivian could send it to me exactly when I needed it.
Let’s choose to focus on good things in my photos from yesterday:
I chose to focus on that donkey last night during a good long walk with Michael and Aaron. I chose to focus on its expression and to share that the good donkey looked a little judgmental to me. My good boyfriend and my good son chose to disagree.
I choose to focus on this: civil disagreement is a good thing.
Choose to focus on good things in a comment, below.
I always choose to focus on gratitude at the end of every post, so thanks to all who helped me focus on the good things here and — of course! — to you, my good reader.
“Delightful Creatures” may seem a strange choice for a title on September 4, 2017, but this blogging creature chooses to be full of delight today, because
I’m home,
Many I love are alive and well, and
I saw many delightful creatures yesterday.
One delightful and camera-shy creature I live with — my boyfriend Michael — worked on replacing this non-delightful fixture in the sink last night.
And while I know that Michael struggled removing that old, ineffective, and stubbornly attached fixture …
… this morning I found this delightful new addition in the kitchen sink.
Isn’t Michael the most delightful creature?
Today’s delightful musical choice honors somebody who created and played music that delighted this blogging creature for many decades — the late Walter Becker from Steely Dan.
If any delightful creatures out there choose to leave a comment, that would be delightful.
Delightful thanks to all who helped me create today’s post and — of course! — to all my delightful readers.
Because I’m in the habit of asking people in therapy groups to express their thoughts and feelings on paper, yesterday I asked a group to write down their bad habits and good habits. I also have the habit of reminding people that we tend to focus on the negative, so I encouraged people to make their list of good habits as long as possible. We discussed how much easier it was to identify bad habits, perhaps because we take our good habits for granted.
I have a habit of including photos to illustrate my blogging points:
Because I have a bad habit of hastily taking pictures when I’m in a hurry, I cut off one of my good habits in the second photo above. I have the bad habit of sometimes forgetting the good, so I can’t remember what that good habit was. I think the first word is “ask.” I do have the habit of asking lots of questions, like this one: can anybody guess what I wrote there?
I’m trying to break my bad habit of being in a hurry, but I had a good reason for rushing yesterday: I had to get things done before signing a Purchase & Sale agreement. Soon, I’ll be developing the habit of living near the water!
I also have the habit of taking pictures that magically fit whatever topic I choose for my daily blog post. Do you see any evidence of bad or good habits here?
That’s Jessica, who was at Whole Foods Market last night giving free samples of Nada Moo! — a coconut milk-based alternative to ice cream. Michael, who is trying to break the bad habit of eating too much cholesterol, bought two pints. I’m also in the habit of including people I like in my blog and Jessica was a GREAT salesperson.
I also have the habit of sharing music with my readers.
I hope you have the habit of leaving comments for bloggers.
One of the good habits I listed above was “expressing appreciation.” Many thanks to all who helped me create today’s post and to you — of course! — for reading it.
… is the question that was taking up space in my head, when I woke up earlier this morning.
Why was that question taking up space in my head?
Here’s why: Some negative people and difficult situations are taking up too much friggin’ space in my head, right now. And, I do NOT want to be renting them so much — if any — of my valuable mental space.
Why do negative people and difficult situations take up so much space? I mean it’s my head, dammit! Why, on earth, am I NOT renting more space to positive people and things, including
my ongoing recovery from my recent cardiac-related surgery,
my extremely good chances, according to my trusted cardiologists, of avoiding dreaded major heart surgery in the near future,
people and animals I love,
my wonderful experiences here in the blog-o-sphere,
the therapy groups I get to do every week at work,
my upcoming presentation on these groups, at a group therapy conference the first weekend of June, and
my upcoming chance to sing a song I love — Sondheim’s “Green Finch and Linnet Bird” — and KILL it at an audition (if I’m not too nervous)?
I would prefer to be giving ALL my mental space to those and other positive things in my life, today. So why am I spacey enough to give any head-space, at all, to:
negative people and
disappointing situations?
Here’s a possible answer to that, which is taking up space in my head:
Perhaps we spend a lot of time and energy on difficult people and situations because our mind is doing its best to solve “the problem.”
Well, giving those things too much head space can be a problem, too.
So how can I start giving negative people and difficult situations less space, right now?
I could:
recognize that those negative people and situations do NOT have as much power as I fear,
rent space to those negative people and situations only during times when I am able to take some helpful action in response,
serve them an eviction notice, over and over again,
deliberately make space for other things (for example, these pictures I took yesterday, in chronological time and space):
and, finally, focus my head on interesting puzzles, like …. what was the word on that sign, above, before it got damaged?
Is there space in your head, right now, for some music? How about renting some space to something from the musical Rent?
In my head, the song “Santa Fe” is about people renting new space, in their heads, for hope and for change.
If your head has space to leave a comment in the space below, my head will become less spacey and more happy, I’m sure.
Finally, I shall now take up more space in your head with my space-filling gratitude for all the positive situations and people in my life …. including you!
Something that was missing for me, yesterday, during a day when I
wrote a blog post,
conducted two therapy groups,
connected with people , and
received many positive messages?
Absolutely nothing, really.
However, at various points of the day, I felt like I was missing:
a person,
the point,
the boat,
out,
signals,
enough sleep,
my headphones,
what somebody said,
a turn,
opportunities,
a call back,
a favorite necklace,
a word,
food,
an important piece of paper,
my medicine,
feedback from specific people,
and so on.
I said to Michael, near the end of the day, “Why can’t I take in all the wonderful things that happened today? Why do I focus on the negative?” And Michael said something funny, which I definitely did not miss at the time — I remember laughing, very hard.
This post is going to be missing what he said, though, because I was tired then, and I can’t recall it now.
However, here are some other things, from yesterday, that I did not miss:
What’s missing, right now, for you?
Thanks to Michael (for fixing the broken cabinet door in the kitchen), to Alarna Rose Gray (and everyone else who makes comments), to those who get and miss things every day, to medical treaters everywhere, for people who create with chalk (and other media), to the streets of Arlington Massachusetts, and to you — of course! — for getting what you did, today.
