Hi everybody:
Mia: Did the kids laugh at the moon and the peeing??
God has a sense of humour too, I bet.
Reminds me of high school days and streakers!!
One guy in our school waited until near the end of the school year, during the last big assembly of the year, (where practically the whole population of 3000 were present), until the principal was up on the stage speaking......to run....totally naked except for a gorrilla head/mask and hairy fur feet, down the centre isle of the auditorium, straight to the stage and directly infront of the principal, where he did a 90 degree turn- stage right, went out the stage door.....never to be seen nude again by that particular group of people!!!
Halarious!! The whole place was in uncontrollable laughter for a good 15 minutes. The principal announced/promised/swore to punish the disrespectful streaker to the full extent of school law....but alas.....he vanished. (Must have had an accomplice
).
Personally, I liked those streaker days.....when one might be walking in the park with friends and some ghostly white totally nude line of truly courageous people would go racing by yelling: "Streak!!! Streak!!!" and the poor little old ladies would shudder (that part wasn't nice) and maybe smile a little sheepishly too, after shuddering (realizing it was all a joke), while the rest of us would just laugh and say: "Crazy dorks eh? Gotta give 'em credit for having guts though. Look at 'em go!! Could you run that fast?" And then those news reports of people being arrested for "streaking" and the mad dash to wrap them in anything to cover their stuff or the blackout lines that would appear in the tv screen, sparing us all from the trauma of seeing the whole "streaker".
Those days added spontaneous halarity to life....something never before seen or since, as far as I know, on that type of scale. People's mothers would say: "Don't you dare streak!!" and then laugh too, when one or a group of them went by. It was hard not to laugh. All those hairy butts (they were usually male...those streakers) zooming by, leaving one wondering if one really saw what one thought one just saw or what???
And all the confused, dazed, shocked, then giggle faced people, following the streakers, as they disappeared, over the horizon, or behind a building, or out a door.
Too funny, if you ask me.
Anyhow, speaking of tofu.....ummm......ok....maybe I'll try the soup thingy. Sometime. And I won't bully tofu or the soy bean if I can possibly help it.
I was thinking about the positive thinking thing again and just want to add that I believe it is like any skill......it takes time to develop. Ok here comes another long shpeeel. Read or discard or skip or pay attention if you like.
I mean, it took awhile to develop whatever negative ways we have of thinking...of forming the habit of thinking that way and so
it will also take time to work on changing that way of thinking into a more positive mode.I do believe it's like any other skill....it can be learned...but it takes time and effort. And it is well worth achieving.
My home life wasn't always the best, to say the least, when I was a kid, and so I really enjoyed school and looked up to my teachers. Especially those I decided were really good, knowledgable, caring ones whom I admired and wanted to emulate. One such teacher once said:
Nothing worth achieving is easy.That stuck in my head so deep, as so wise and so real. Once I accepted that idea, it was easier to work toward things I wanted to achieve because I realized it would be hard work. I expected it to be difficult, ignored (to a certain extent) the tough parts, and kept going..until I was able to reach my goal/s. That teacher taught me something more valuable than just about anything else I have ever learned.
So, I guess I have the advantage of learning to think a certain way, from quite a young age, because I was lucky to have such wonderful teachers that influenced me in good ways and taught me to look at things from many positive perspectives.
The thing is......nothing worth achieving isssssss easy. So...it is logical to expect stuff worth achieving to be hard, sometimes at least. I believe thinking positive thoughts, often, consistently, is something worth striving for and achieving. It is not easy. It takes effort and time and repetition but it is worth it. There is no possible way that anyone will think positive stuff all of the time, nor would that be something to expect or want. It would be too perfect and as humans, we are incapable of that.
Bad stuff happens and so life goes. But.....even in those bad times....I know I have trained myself to think good things between suffering, to look for something bright in the darkness, to never give up hope that things will get better, to believe in the possibility of good times ahead and good things happening....of solving problems.....and so even in my most difficult moments....I find those thoughts crossing my mind and reminding me to never give up...to try harder....that nothing worth achieving is easy.
This helps me survive and thrive in the world and I'm not saying I never get down, I'm saying that I seem to only allow myself to be soley down for so long before my "habit" kicks in and says: "Wait a minute......you don't usually think this way. Come on. Things will get better. All is not lost. Count your blessings. Be glad things aren't worse. Look for solutions. Do the work. Yada Yada".
It's a skill....learned....practiced....worked toward.....formed into habit.
I'm saying all this for those who feel like they are losing hope....who come here begging for help because they are feeling just about as low as one can get. When in such a state, it can be said that we are in a very negative state and need to do something to move to a more positive state....in order to survive.
Here are some things I do when I'm feeling stuck in negative mode.
These aren't my inventions. They have helped many.
1. Get up and move........to a different spot in your home, preferable outdoors, or at least to another room.
(This tells your brain that your environment has just changed
gets brain into adapt mode...where it has to adjust...can and often does momentarily stop negative thoughts).
It's one decision that is easy enough to make. Move. When you're really in the pits....move to another place......physically.
2. Drink water. Water is necessary for many chemical reactions to occur naturally and smoothly in your brain. Think of water as clensing, soothing, purifying, hydrating, enhancing chemical processes in your brain. We need water to keep those chemical reactions occurring properly and to flush some chemicals that temporarily become overloaded (which is what happens when we are really in a negative state.....certain chemicals go into overload and need to be flushed out).
3. Tell yourself: "I'm ok". These two words give your mind a quick emotional break. Easy to remember. Two little words. They can help break a pattern of thinking that is not helping you, at this point.
4. Then tell yourself: "No more of this neg junk for 5 minutes". 5 minutes isn't a very long time, is it? Surely you can stop thinking negatively for a mere 5 minutes and live to tell about it, right? Just 5 minutes (I know...it's a trick....but it works).
5. Focus on something.....anything good for the entire 5 minutes. I like to walk outside and find a bird to watch, a rock to admire, or a tree to observe. If the weather is crappy then I might look at a picture of someone I love, talk, play with, pat/hug my dog/s, or sit in a chair, close my eyes, relax my body, and visualize something lovely...like the waves on the ocean, blue sky, white sand, sail boats......whatever is nice and soothing and enjoyable.
Consciously focussing on something positive is key to switching from negative to positive mode, especially when in distress.6. Breath......deeply, slowly, paying attention to each breath, feeling the oxygen coming into your lungs, and letting yourself exhale slowly and comfortably. Oxygen is also detrimental to many chemical processes in the brain. Breathing deeply allows more oxygen into our lungs, into our cells, which circulates to our brain. Breathing deeply and slowly can actually slow and strengthen our heart rate, which makes the movement of that oxygened blood more efficient and allows for it to be delivered to our brain cells quicker and more fully than short, quick breathing does (which is what we do under stress/in fight and flight mode......which is meant for short periods and not healthy as a long term response to stress). Remembering to breath can be a real life safer, helping us to think clearer and relax some, during stressful periods. Negative mode is a stressful period when our brains need more oxygen to work more efficiently.
7. Now do something else. By now, you should be successfully out of negative mode...even though it has only been a short period. You can now decide to go do something enjoyable or useful, to give yourself a break from focussing on your troubles. You can return to your problems later, when you are feeling stronger and more able to actually deal with them, or when you feel the need to release more feelings. But for now...go wash the dishes, do a craft, call a friend, read, watch tv, anything that will distract you for awhile. This is not denial...it's a break from suffering. It's a good thing to give your brain a little break. It will work better afterward.
8. Repeat and extend numbers 1,2,3, 4, 5 and 6 to form a new habit. If you are in the habit of thinking negative thoughts, for long periods of time, focussing on the negative stuff in your life and breathing as if you are being chased by a bear, depriving your brain/body of plenty of water and staying in one spot.......it will do you good to work on changing this.
Your brain will thank you later.
9. Plan. When you feel better, not so negative about everything, open to considering different ideas.....sit down and try to examine one problem at a time. Try to discover solutions. Try to think of ways to improve the situation. Try to find things you can do to make your life more tolerable, enjoyable, satisfying, etc.
10. Which goes hand in hand with number 10.....make lists....write stuff down. Even if it seems silly. Look it over and see if there is anything that you can live with. See if there are things that can be done/thought of differently/dealt with in a reasonable way. Try to list what you need/want ..what your needs/wants are and how to work towards satisfying them. You may decide you need a therapist to help you with this. You may decide you need a lawyer, a doctor, a minister or a friend to guide you. You may see things on your own, that you hadn't thought of before because you were stuck seeing only the black, not the white or the grey/gray(???
). Repeat 7, 8, 9 and 10 often.....to form a habit.
Sorry if I bored anyone.
Hope all this blabbing helps even one person. Negative thinking doesn't just keep us emotionally off keel...it can have a negative physical effect too. It's tough on our physical hearts. Can cause all kinds of illnesses/or enhance those illnesses that are already present. Positive thinking can help people recover from a lot. 10 minutes, morning and night, of relaxing, breathing, focussing can help to form a new habit which will enhance health. Drinking more water (and eating a healthy diet) enhances all aspects of health. Doing activities we enjoy or give us a sence of accomplishment...enhances life period...gives us stuff to look forward to...and gives a break from the pain. There is no doubt about it.
It will not cause harm to work toward positive mode....as a habit.
Hypocondriacs really believe they are sick. Placebos really do cure some of their illnesses. What better proof of what the mind can do and undo is there?
GFN
