Decompressing

Question.

Do you know that feeling of total mental exhaustion?

The feeling of being so overwhelmed by the daily grind that you can't think anymore?

I am betting that you definitely know this feeling.

It is, unfortunately, a normal part of the human condition these days.

Rage days.

Road rage, "unknown caller" on your caller ID rage, cell phone rage, incompetent people EVERYWHERE rage, burnt dinner rage, overdrawn account rage, late fee rage, GET OFF YOUR PHONE rage, why can't this zit heal rage, tear in your last pair of black tights rage, what is so hard about spelling the word "equality" rage, don't use that tone with me rage, a meeting shouldn't last more than an hour rage, where is that smell in the pantry coming from rage....

I dunno. The list is endless.

Feel free to add a few rages of your own to the above list.

Tired days.

So tired that you can't be nice, so tired that you can't smile, so tired that you kick the dog and snap at the kid and say some really bad words....you burn dinner because you are staring off into space and then you fall into a rage.

Usually, it is only a temporary feeling. Mike and I use the term "decompress" to describe what we do when we feel this way.

We need to "decompress" after a long day. Alone. Separate from everyone, from each other. For half an hour. Where it is quiet. Then, after we have calmed down, we can converse with one another. Practice spelling "equality". Eat the burned dinner. Speak to the "unknown caller" and tell them never to call again.

Sometimes it is a deeper problem. Half an hour doesn't fix it....and there isn't a vacation in sight. As my friend, Harriett, said "I miss blue water". Me too, Harriett. Me too.

Additionally, the weather has been a bit gloomy. And the husband has been with his fire pit.

This is when I go to bed at 7:00 pm.

So that I can wake up at 2:00 am and start obsessing about nothing in particular.

My bird feeder has actually been helping me through the rage days and the too-darn-tired-to- think days.

This is the view from the outside, but the best part is what I can see from the comfort of my kitchen....


If I am really quiet and still, I can watch them eat and flutter and admire the beautiful colors that God has adorned them with.

Ahhh, my little chickadee!


These little guys are eating about 5 pounds of seed a week! Whoever coined the expression "eats like a bird" must have never had a bird feeder.


Matthew 6:26 - Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? (NIV)

I am channeling this to you....quiet kitchen, sunny window, favorite beverage, fuzzy slippers, no sowing or reaping or storing.

Happy Friday!

~J