Let it Soar! Let it Soar! Let it Soar!

Kite Surfers
Kite Surfers on Tampa Bay near North Skyway Park just south of St Petersburg, Florida. Copyright by WyoJones. All rights reserved. Used with permission.

Many of you know that my hopes for Monday are usually centered around a vague hope that I don’t get hosed, but I loved this photo. It lifted me without me having to leave the house (a good thing for a hermit).

In the morning, when sentience begins its slow return to my brain, I turn my attention to the day’s potential. In the “morning of my soaring hopes,” I will freely admit that some days are easier than others, often because of events outside my direct control.

Yes, I still think there are things I control. LOL

Appliances die. Problems crop up, multiplying my to-do list into an overwhelming mountain to climb. We lose things. We find things we wish we hadn’t. News filters in not matter how deep we’re hunkered down. Life delivers the good and the bad without regard to balance or how much we’re already dealing with.
There are lots and lots of perky quotes out there about positive thinking and looking on the bright side. I won’t deny there are days when I’d like to jump up and down on perky quotes and then kick them out the door. If I could set them on fire, I’d do that, too.

Behind the perky and upbeat, there is a very real truth.

The one thing I am in charge of (possibly the only thing) is my response to Life.

Life Happens.

A Lot.

Then I figure out how I feel about it. Whether I want to admit it or not, it’s always my choice.
When I decide to feel crappy about it, I’m the one who gets jumped on and kicked to the curb. At least, that’s what it feels like. And apparently it is painfully easy to set myself on fire. (Insert wry grin here)

So I really like photos that lift my spirits above the common woes of Life Happening so persistently. It’s a funny quirk of mine that I like up, even though I’m afraid of heights. So I’m drawn to photos of up things.

Music also has a profound effect on my mood. When I’m stuck doing mundane, possibly crappy stuff, I like to ramp up the music and power through. Softer music, for quieter reflection has the power to cure. And then there are songs that make my soul sing, lifting me above the mundane, reminding me that Life is about more than dishes and whining—a sort of figurative up that leaves my fear of heights undisturbed.

It reminds me that joy is possible, yes, even in the morning. And yes, even during tough times I can focus on what is right instead of what is wrong. That I’m not helpless in the face of Life’s Happenings. That there is still something I control.

Most of the time this makes me happy, but sometimes I just want to kick something. LOL

What heals/helps you cope with Life? I love comments so much, I enter them into my monthly drawing for an AnaBanana gift basket ($25 value). I announce the winner the first blog post of the new month. 🙂

Perilously yours,
Pauline

P.S. The other way I cope with what Life dishes out is funneling the hosing to my characters. It’s very cathartic. One character whose life goes south very quickly is Sara from The Key.

From a reader review: “With a twist you get into this novel and find it hard to put down
Get the full version of all 4 parts – you will thank me later
Enjoy”

The Key: Part One

You can get the first part of my full-length novel, The Key, for FREE and you can get it from your favorite online bookseller. The novel is available in digital, print and audio, btw. 🙂