This Week's Pondering:
Q: Do you ever feel like something is missing?
A: We all feel lonely, angry, and sad sometimes. When these feelings encroach, it's easy to look around, find something at fault, and blame that thing for the way we’re feeling.
After returning from a trip abroad recently, I went into a slump and found myself asking the question: What do I have to focus on now? What's next?! Boredom reigned, and loneliness too, as I adjusted to the correct time zone. I blamed my kids for being busy. I overwhelmed myself with house projects, filling my time with odd jobs to distract myself from my emotions.
It's okay to feel low, and sometimes that's exactly what our spirit seems to want. However, when I'm behaving negatively toward others, or when I’m distracting myself from feeling emotions, I know that's an opportunity to notice that I'm avoiding something deeper within myself.
This time, I realized the thing that was missing is me.Â
What feelings am I yearning for? I found ways to fulfill those yearnings. For example, when I felt lonely, I texted some friends and scheduled a game night. I also noticed my cat lying beside me on the bed, so I snuggled up to him. The loneliness seemed to melt away. When I’m able to find things in my immediate proximity that fulfill the feeling I’m yearning for, I always feel better. And more self-reliant, too. It’s all about 1-degree turns toward my North.
Your turn: What do you do when you feel something's missing?