emotions

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Chalice of Fear.

Distant jet engine sounds
Motors whirring like determined beasts
Scary forcefulness in the tone of their roar
As my mind freezes in a fright response
Prioritize telling myself it’s okay
You are safe at this time
Let instincts wind down and focus on
Bringing calmness to my nervous system.

Do you see the monsters all around us?
Constant reminders in threatening sounds
Drifting into background noise until
We sleep restlessly to their nightmare song
Until quietness is uncomfortable; and
The unfamiliarity of hush becomes ominous.

Peace looms
Just around the corner of hearing
In the old sounds
Of wind, leaves rustling
Of water flowing, or tides shifting
Of birdsong, insects, and wings
Listen to the colours of nature calling you
Back to safety
Remember sunlight on your skin
Before the smog and machines took over
Recall your origins and reconnect
Life that was, can be again
Dip into the refreshing waters of calm
Drink deep and fill your thirst
Float in sanctuary and
Remember your power.

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There is no Facade.

Laying in the bed, in the dark,
Amidst the flood of feelings pushing negativity
Attempting to steamroll me into dirt from which I came.
Talking to myself
Listing the emotions and itemising hurts
The compounding unresolved triggers of a week;
Accepting it all;
Compassionate reasoning to slice though
the cries of a hurt Ego.
Does any of this matter?
How do I matter?
How do you find joy when there is none?
When maybe – a glimmer of hope
will eventually coalesce
from the scattered remnants of me.

There is no whole at this point
Only the black hole
and the supernova
Vying for control of this soul.

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Remembrance Day 2022.

On Remembrance Day I remember all
That served, that helped,
That never returned, or returned forever changed.
One minute’s silence.
Thoughts shift to my dad
He got sick and died
But it was the withering away from illness that really hurts me today
My strong dad reduced to an invalid, struggling to stay conscious during my almost daily visits
And me; not knowing what to say, how to feel, how to behave
Reminding myself that being present mattered.
Life’s not fair – or is it?
The mess, the pain, the hurt
Some of us move on, maybe
Some never really let go of what was.
I can’t forget my dad, so I also remember
Trying to love him, trying to help him, trying to comfort him
Trying to let him know that I cared, even when he went off on a rant
Inspirational, difficult, loving, flawed.
How to resolve all of that for my own being?
How to accept all that was, the good and the bad,
An imperfect person who tried so hard,
Made such a difference, and yet
Was frequently very difficult to be around.
And then slowly incapacitated by ill health
Parkinson’s disease, heart disease, liver failing.
And a Medical system unable to fully help
Complicated medication interactions
Drugs at cross-purposes.
And there was I in the midst of it all
Transporting to specialist appointments, blood tests
Listening and asking question of the experts
To understand it all.
Maybe that was a mistake
Now I know all the gritty details, all the difficulties, all the troubles
Seeing first-hand how someone’s life is struggling, steadily running down;
Once again, not knowing how to be, other than present.
So I remember the briefest moments of joy, of expressed gratitude, coherence
And let the positives buoy me through the storm of remembering.

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Monday in Six parts.

The world leans to the left
Off-balance, I feel like falling
Yet to my right an invisible anchor
On this chair
Balancing my body in space
Pressured by unknown forces
Closed eyes bring more confusion
Sitting still, is swaying
Not moving, is swirling around.

Then voices call my name
From another place
that is neither here nor now.

Stimulate the senses with movement,
with coffee
Letting the experience be
Trying to let it go, like double-sided glue tape.

Sunshine therapy with physical stillness
Lets the head pain become apparent
Tilt my head towards the sun
Release my body, let muscles relax
Feel the breeze tugging at my clothes,
Fabric protects me from the chill
Then clouds part and the sun beams full Autumn strength onto my hand and face
The glorious warm glow from a fire 150 million kilometres away
Soaking into my skin
Heat circulating under my clothes
As I sit facing North East.

Body tremors
as it processes unpleasant irritants
Myriad internal battles
unbeknownst to my consciousness
as it attempts to make sense of this day
As I search for a stability of being
As feelings and emotions mix the physical and ephemeral worlds.

Writing with shaking hands
Squinting through sunshine
The world connects with me
as I attempt to ground myself with it
Birdsong becomes apparent above the background traffic noise
As hearing connects with nature
As nature connects with me
As I sense the grass nearby
The plants and life active within
the thinnest surface layer of the earth
My own roots reach deeper
Searching for gravity, solidity, molten metal flowing deep towards the centre of this living ball of amazing
that shelters us from the great nothingness out there
The all-ness that we are
The great connection between every living cell, every individual and sentience that we share air and energy with
Every spirit and soul past and present exists right now, right here, with us
When you remember, their existence continues,
their influence continues,
their significance and meaning carries you and I along
As we need support, so it is there
As we need reminders, so they talk to us in ways that may not be apparent right now.
We all are
We are what was and what we choose to be
Be this with your loved ones
Be this with acquaintances and strangers
Be who you need to be, and
Be all that you can.

.

[3 May 2021]

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Shrouded in Heaviness.

Shrouded in heaviness
Time drags with a sense of impending crush
The reflex is to hide away
But little good ever comes of that
Ever wondering the triggers or nature of such great burdening weight
The sense is shared, not singular
Real as any other emotion
So we carry each other along
The solution becomes nature
Let the brisk wind blow away the dark energy
Let the sunshine purify your spirit
Holding hands, intertwined energies
Time comes to revel in relief
The joys of normality return
And we don’t look back.

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Finding the Sunshine.

Finding some self support
Telling myself good work for what was managed
Preemptively silencing the inner critic
Focusing on positive outcomes
in the midst of difficult days.
Learning this technique
from the person beside me
So much just like me
With many more years of positive voice
The perfect exemplar for me
Watching how a trusted caring soul
helps themself;
Helps me by example.
Thankful
Grateful
Acknowledging my positives
Shining a light against the darkness.

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Surfacing Trauma.

So uncomfortable
With the world going crazy
With people going crazy around me
Rational people acting irrationally
Contributing to the global panic & disorder

Today it all triggered painful memories

My father ranting at the dinner table
About what is wrong with the government
About what is wrong with certain people
All contributing to this global problem
Angry ranting that should never have been
in front of a young child, a family
Unable to escape from the dining table
Unable to understand or process this all
Anger directed at others
Sometimes directed at his family
Self-justified idealist

Trauma pain

For a child that didn’t understand
Such strong emotions were terrifying
To be avoided at all costs
Never discussed
Never explained meaningfully

Locked away and bottled away
Smouldering and eating away
Maybe today is time to heal a little more
Time to feel the pain and let it go
Finally supported
Finally understood
Finally strong enough to feel the hurt
to process, to understand
Letting go of darkness
A wholeness of light
To begin this new phase of being more

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A Tragic Toll.

All around me people I know are affected by the bushfires
Some can’t leave their home without choking on the smoke
Others are evacuated in the middle of the night with a single bag
Our unique wildlife is decimated
More of our country destroyed than in the Amazon and USA fires combined
My own home cycles between a heatwave and smoke-filled rooms
The country burns and the government does very little
Our own Prime Minister went on holiday with a global media mogul
Instead of staying to support his Nation
Priorities.
Denies the relevancy of all the fire warnings sent to him 6 months ago
He apologises, and then belittles the victims
Outright lies, and says the opposite of what he previously claimed
Claims whatever he says now is the truth
and whatever you think he said before is misrepresentation
Every day truthful news and reporters are Trumped
Am I living in the USA or Australia?
Family homes, local businesses, and lives are lost
Feeling for the victims, is overshadowed by anger
At a government that chooses not to act in ways that could help
That shows no strength and leadership when we need it.
Hope comes from those at their lowest
Those left with little who give it to others with even less
Others who give real support, selflessly, anonymously
Every member of the public who tries to do the right thing
To help their neighbours near and far
And having little to offer in practical terms, I do what I can, where I can
My heart goes out to everyone affected
And my anger at the government grows
They will not shame or scare me into compliance
For they are the instigators of these dramas
They are climate science deniers and selfish egotists
Perpetuating a social imbalance of power and wealth for their own benefit
They won’t get away with this
We will make noise until changes for the better, for all the people, are enacted.

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In Time, Life Changes.

In time, life changes.
Because you want it to, because you make it.
And then you wonder, about the different uncomfortables, the different suffering.
Healing pains.
Old wounds expelling poison, slowly improving.
And you wonder, do I feel better?
Because you wanted an end to the despairing discomfort.
While you still labour with troubles, afflicted with unsettling dis-ease.
Tiring dysfunction.
Besieged by the combination of interactive physical and mental symptoms and assaults.

Wondering if there will ever be more peace than battle.
Wondering when you will get back the strength you once felt, seemingly so long ago.
You look for hope, try to locate it whilst lost in the darkness.
Hope to stoke the fire within, to spark the light and bring back brightness.

===

{ Struggling today with the tiredness, aches and unease that follow an indeterminate gluten reaction the prior day. Source unknown, and a rare occurrence these days of constant vigilance. }

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Remembering Completeness.

I remember

Pain and fun and all the experiences I had growing to where I am now. And remembering can be overwhelming, because of the emotion it brings. Especially the sad emotions, the hurt, the moments that led me to questioning myself until I curled up into a ball and burned with tears because I felt so small and insignificant and lost. I don’t feel like I’ve learnt how to move beyond that, I just know that it happens less often. The emotions don’t overwhelm very often. But I am troubled by the unsettling hurt constantly bubbling beneath the surface of my consciousness. An uneasiness that disturbs my calmness. I don’t want to deny it. But when I try to accept what it is, the pain is confusing in its powerful pull over me. I remember this can’t be ignored. I remember there are people who care about me. I remember to make whatever positive effort feels manageable at these times. I remember that doing a little of something is 100% more effective than doing nothing. I choose to action over my memories. I choose to allow remembering to be what it is. I remember that there is a better place for my spirit to exist. I remember to love myself first with a gentleness and acceptance. I remember my calm, loving self. I remember my completeness.