So I said I’d see everyone on the “other side” when I signed off a little over a week ago to take my teensy blogcation. But you may be wondering… the other side of what? I’ll spare you the gory details, but suffice it to say it wasn’t a very good place.
It was ugly, dark, miserable and lonely. And worst of all, I put myself in this horrible place. I didn’t exactly go there willingly, but once I found myself stuck in the proverbial deep, dark forest… I didn’t really try very hard to get out.
Hence, the little vacation.
As most of you already know, creativity is a must when you’re writing and it’s REALLY hard to be creative when you feel imprisoned. As my mother said: Creativity comes from a place of freedom… and a bit ago I felt anything but free.
Nothing has changed. My life looks exactly the same today as it did then. But my mindset has changed. And that, my friends… changes everything.
Will I stay on this healthier side forever? Will I continue to tread the soil of this better, happier and safer side? Probably not. I’m sure I’ll occasionally wander back into the forest or at the very least skirt dangerously and precariously around the edge of it.
But I hope that from my self-imposed time-out, I will remember a few very important things…
~ I hold the pen that is writing the story of my life.
~ I choose the thoughts that play like recordings in my mind.
~ My very best will never be good enough for some. But that cannot mean that it isn’t still good enough for me.
Woman In Thrisis 
Your last line is the key. It’s my quote of the day.
Absolutely!
I too just returned from a weeks walk on the darker side of life. It was not my first trip there, but it may have been the shortest. I am not sure what snapped me back, and the experience was unsettling. I am hoping that by writing about my experience I can keep myself in the light so to speak. Your list of “important things” is very true, sometimes its just so damn hard to remember them.
Chin up sweetie 🙂
Be kind and gentle to yourself.
In this life, the only thing you should be certain of is your own freedom.
I love the last line in your post – so true. Remember to be TRUE to YOU and it is okay to be SELFISH and TAKE CARE of YOU!!! Have a Great Week:)
Thank you to ALL of you for the encouragement. 😉 I agree with everything each one of you said! AMEN!
I agree with everyone here! Sometimes we just have to remind ourselves that we need to be nice to ourselves. Who is going to be nice and forgiving towards us if we can’t even do it ourselves?
I sometimes notice that I have extremely high expectations for myself and then I get disappointed in myself when I can’t keep up. I think that’s really quite absurd that I am causing all that stress myself. Maybe the key is to be more compassionate with yourself and cut yourself some slack. You do it for others, why not for yourself, too…
Life, eh? I’m glad you’re doing better for the moment. Read this the other day. Don’t know if you’ve already seen it buy maybe you’d relate: http://hyperboleandahalf.blogspot.com/2011/10/adventures-in-depression.html
Smart stuff!