I’ve been AWOL of late – and for that I apologize. Depression and grief took hold for a while, and then things got really busy for a while, and then I felt so guilty about not writing that I couldn’t write. It’s a vicious circle. I decided today, though, that I should write something and put it out there. So here goes.
Word Wednesday – Self Care isn’t Selfish
I’m a worrier by nature. For as long as I can remember I’ve been anxious about things such as fire, and plane crashes (though this one has pretty much disappeared), and a million other things. Over the years I’ve developed ways to assuage my worries, and sometimes my over-prepared nature has come in handy – I’m actually really great in a crisis because I’ve already played out all the outcomes in my head so all I do in the moment is act. So while I may check a campfire a couple of extra times to make sure it’s *really* out, my worrywart nature doesn’t usually affect my daily life. However, in the last few years I have noticed that somehow I’ve become a stress sponge. Unconsciously, I absorb the worries and stresses of others and make them my own. It’s beyond being empathetic, and it’s definitely not good for my health, but I don’t seem to realize that I’m doing it until too late.
Word Wednesday – Rocks and Hard Places
Most of you already know that I have a slight healthy obsession with board games. I love to play them with friends and I use them to teach social skills such as patience and turn taking when I work with kids and teens on the Autism spectrum. I remember spending a lot of rainy afternoons at the cottage as a kid playing games like the Hardy Boys Treasure Game, Scrabble, Don’t Lose Your Head, and even Sorry! (which caused far more tears than smiles). I’ve since graduated to more strategic games that don’t rely purely on luck to win. I was taught to play chess when I was in grade three – mostly because I couldn’t keep my hands off the gorgeous chess set my parents had bought on vacation, and dad figured it was a good way to teach me to think a few steps ahead.
Word Wednesday – Courage – My Word
This isn’t the post I intended to write this week, or the post I imagined I would write on this word. Things change, however, and though I may be completely freaked out by change, it still happens. So I adapted, and am writing a slightly different Word Wednesday post.
Word Wednesday – Fire
I have a love – hate relationship with fire. On one hand, I’m a Girl Guide, so I love nothing more than to sit around a campfire telling stories, singing songs, and roasting marshmallows, spider dogs, and the occasional sour key (don’t ask – it was a dare). On the other hand, fire terrifies me. Like wake up at night sweating with my heart racing terrified. It’s always been like that. There is no specific event that triggered it, but I’ve always been very aware that while we like to think fire is an element that can be controlled, it can’t be – not all the time. As a result, I’m meticulous about fire safety and making sure a campfire or a cooking fire is well and truly out before I go on and do anything else. Even then I’ve been known to sneak out of my tent to double and triple check that it’s out and nothing is smoldering. My family teases me all the time about this habit, but it’s either that or not sleep all night because I’m obsessing over whether or not the fire is out. I take solace in the fact that almost all of my family is terrified of heights (both parents included) but I’m fine – the only thing I don’t like is someone else rocking the gondola or the suspension bridge but being up there? No issues other than the occasional bit of ear pain caused by the wonky tubes and not liking pressure changes. I also have a fear of dock spiders but that comes from a specific incident and I’ve become much better over the years with that fear.
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