Elsa was sitting on the couch armrest where my husband relaxed, something she never does. She usually sits on my couch armrest, where I can reach over and pet her. My husband looked at me and smiled, thinking he would now have that privilege. But when he went to pet Elsa, she turned into liquid and oozed off the armrest like his hand was so dirty and disgusting. I had to burst out laughing.
Sometimes the world spits out rainbows and unicorn farts, and other times it lays down thumbtacks and sour candy (which don’t taste good, despite what my husband says).
When I get pricked advice I’ve found helpful is to observe what you feel in the moment, and reflect on why it affects you. Don’t react, but pause, reflect, and then respond. That moment of hesitation is not weakness—it is control where you find the right tool to move forward with.
And this tool could be grateful thoughts, a plan of action, the right thing to say, or even another sip of your drink.
Or this tool could be to go get cat treats to catch yourself a kitty. Whatever works to lasso the best outcome.
(Note: This is sooo hard to do sometimes. It seems sometimes my emotions attempt to take over and devolve the rest of my moment. But one of my goals this summer is to work on this. Hopefully I will be faster than a snail’s vengeance with this shadow work.)