Holding on to the Sunshine

I've been trying to run too hard lately; the to-do list is overflowing along with several unexpected hurdles appearing and needing to be jumped.  That, coupled with the shorter hours of daylight, recently pushed me into an emotional pit.  Dang stress, hormones, SAD, depression, whatever you want to call it; it was misery.

Thank goodness DH was understanding and supportive.  Otherwise I might still be in the pit instead of about halfway up the side of it, stretching my hand to the top and searching for a place to dig my fingertips in so I can hop out onto solid footing again.

I needed to back off the busyness.  Cut out the unimportant.  Tell a few people "No." Take a breather.  Recharge so that I could regroup.

So, I spent some time, off and on, over four days, and put together a 1000 piece puzzle.  I find puzzles relaxing.  I also, however, find them addictive and have to take care to not let my drive to complete the puzzle preclude necessary daily tasks.  So, for me, four days was a looooonnnnggg time to get all 1000 pieces in their proper places.

In between 30 to 60 minutes puzzle sessions, I worked on a few tasks I'd been putting off.  Suddenly they weren't so daunting any more.  Puzzle therapy!

Something else I've done is to allow myself time, in the middle of the day, when I'm done with my morning work, the DDs are at school, and DH is at work, to sunbathe. I've never been one for sunbathing, but I'm learning the benefits of absorbing some Vitamin D right from the source. To grab the last gasp of summer we've been having lately with temps in the 70s and even 80s, and just lay on the back deck in the sun for 1/2 hour to an hour.  Ahhh, solar energy becoming mental energy, becoming physical energy to tackle some more chores.  The brain feels less foggy, the body ready for activity.  The kitchen gets scrubbed, the basement tidied, hinges on the chicken coop door get repaired!

Today, I decided to bring some more sunshine into the house.  Our balmy forecast is about to end; clouds and cooler wetter weather are on their way in the next twenty-four hours.  To combat the funk returning with the lack of sun outside, I cut some calendula and dahlias and brought them inside.

I'm going to hold onto that sunshine as long as I can.  When my head starts to feel cloudy and gloomy, I'll look at those flowers and recharge from their stored sunshine.