Tuesday, September 13, 2005
Dragonflies and Lizards
Lately, I have been very negative, allowing the circumstances of life, work, the world, family, everyth
ing, to get me down. I never realized how much effort I was putting into my depression. Karim has been having co-worker issues at his job and has been feeling a bit depressed as well and I didn't know what to say to him to get him to stop thinking and talking about it. Basically, he brought work home today. I had a moment of "inspiration" this morning when I was trying to make him feel better. I told him that it was important for us to stop thinking about work when we were outside of it. "When you look at a flower, think about the flower. Think about its color, its smell, its beauty. The flower wants your full attention. Don't think about work. Why do you think I'm always chasing Dragonflies and Lizards?" Of course, he smiled when I said that. I am. I love to watch them play and its like a little mini vacation for me.
However, sometimes words of wisdom are harder for the speaker to acknowledge than the listener. I had a few issues at work today myself, and when I came home, I vent
ed, and ranted, and raved, and threatened to quit, you name it. So Karim came up with wisdom of his own. "Whatever you are angry about today may not have a stable basis. You are worried about such and such, but it may not happen and then you will have been angry for nothing." There! My Dragonfly just spit in my eye! (Dragonflies need attention, too.)
God bless Dragonflies and Lizards and all manner of creepy-crawlies on this earth. Without them we wouldn't focus. Whatever your creature of choice, it calls you to get away from your worries; to watch as life is lived, unfolding before you, in its supreme cycle. Forget the worries of work. Let God invite you to the dance, and enjoy those little things in life that we so often forget. I will always stop and look at the lizard doing pushups on the fence and wonder why he does it, rather than wondering why my work isn't going well. Have I ever mentioned how beautifully the birds sing in Texas?
ing, to get me down. I never realized how much effort I was putting into my depression. Karim has been having co-worker issues at his job and has been feeling a bit depressed as well and I didn't know what to say to him to get him to stop thinking and talking about it. Basically, he brought work home today. I had a moment of "inspiration" this morning when I was trying to make him feel better. I told him that it was important for us to stop thinking about work when we were outside of it. "When you look at a flower, think about the flower. Think about its color, its smell, its beauty. The flower wants your full attention. Don't think about work. Why do you think I'm always chasing Dragonflies and Lizards?" Of course, he smiled when I said that. I am. I love to watch them play and its like a little mini vacation for me. However, sometimes words of wisdom are harder for the speaker to acknowledge than the listener. I had a few issues at work today myself, and when I came home, I vent
ed, and ranted, and raved, and threatened to quit, you name it. So Karim came up with wisdom of his own. "Whatever you are angry about today may not have a stable basis. You are worried about such and such, but it may not happen and then you will have been angry for nothing." There! My Dragonfly just spit in my eye! (Dragonflies need attention, too.) God bless Dragonflies and Lizards and all manner of creepy-crawlies on this earth. Without them we wouldn't focus. Whatever your creature of choice, it calls you to get away from your worries; to watch as life is lived, unfolding before you, in its supreme cycle. Forget the worries of work. Let God invite you to the dance, and enjoy those little things in life that we so often forget. I will always stop and look at the lizard doing pushups on the fence and wonder why he does it, rather than wondering why my work isn't going well. Have I ever mentioned how beautifully the birds sing in Texas?
