How to deal

I was thinking earlier this afternoon about some things happening in my life which are, well, difficult. And I burst into tears. There's no need for gory details here; sometimes life is just hard, and I know anyone reading this can relate.

So I was having a moment where I was really upset and focusing on the things that upset me, and I started thinking "this is ridiculous; I have so much to be grateful for, I just need to think about that instead".

So I went to the beach for a few minutes. Then I went over to the house and played worship music really loud (singing along of course) while scraping the remaining painted-on-flowers off the tiles above the kitchen sink. Then I called my friend Jamie and suggested a girls movie night (John is still off the island). We're going to watch a Chonda Pierce DVD (in case you haven't heard of Chonda, she is a Christian comedian, hilarious and inspiring).

So here's what I learned today about how to deal when life is overwhelming.

1. Reconnect. For me, this was two fold:
- reconnecting with God - this is why I touch salt water; it keeps me grounded, reminding me that my problems are small in God's huge beautiful world, but that He loves me and will help me with them anyway
- reconnecting with people - I had spent the day (until about 5 PM) mostly by myself; although there's nothing wrong with being alone (and I actually enjoyed the quiet time), it's generally not good to be alone when you are feeling sad, mad or overwhelmed at life

2. Worship. Loudly, with music, if you'd like. Or quietly, with prayer. Or however works for you, but stop and remember that God is good and worthy of all worship and praise.

3. Count your blessings.

Dusk was falling as I sat on the deck at my house reflecting on the many blessings in my life and listening to the 6 PM church bells. I enjoyed watching the blue of the sky deepen as night began to draw near. The tiny sliver of moon was luminescent and lovely. I sat for a while, waiting to see the first star appear. After several minutes, I still hadn't seen one and was beginning to get antsy. Then, I tilted my head further back and saw that there had been one shining above me all along. So that was my final lesson in how to deal:

4. Look up.

Hope your life isn't too much to deal with, wherever you are...