One Thought at a Time

27/52 {Window Light}

for my personal photography project

Wouldn’t it figure that the one day we get rain here in Texas after none for a month is the afternoon of the Fourth of July, which you guessed it, means no fireworks and a bummed out Valkner Family.  Ah well, we still kept the kiddo up late and ate ice cream after a long day of playing in the water and laying around the house watching cartoons.  It was a good day. 

The rain brought with it a bit of melancholy… I suppose because it was meant to be a day spent outdoors, or maybe just because it brought the day’s plans to a screeching halt… Anyway, you know the days like that… just a little pensive. 

Thinking about things…nothing in particular and everything all at once.  I’ve learned that when this mood comes, this little bit of ennui or a drop of the blues, the best thing to do is to let it come without fighting it or inviting it to stay. 

When your thoughts feel like they’re coming at you like a runaway train, let them come, but only one at a time.  When you can slow yourself down to one moment at a time, things are manageable.  “In this moment I am fine”, sort of thing.  For me knitting, or sewing or something physically creative also helps to focus my drifting mind on a task at hand and helps that overwhelming downpour of thoughts to subside.

You’ll never be able to eliminate “negative” feelings… sadness, frustration, anger, etc., but if you can think of them as prompts to pay attention to and address something amiss in your life, your choices, actions and habits, you can make adjustments and alleviate them, and therefore keep moving forward.  When we try to avoid these painful feelings and thoughts, we give them more power.  They will come regardless, you just don’t have to allow them to move in and unpack.