Unpredictable Weather

While much of the country is experiencing extreme heat in mid-June, here in Oregon it has been a cloudy and wet 4 weeks! I know myself well enough to know that I mentally don’t do well with long periods of clouds and rain. I get depressed, want to sleep excessively, and tend to hibernate. I also feel it more in my joints. This morning I woke up to more rain. As I drank my warm coffee and journaled, I was looking outside and actually enjoyed memories of the steady, light rain of my childhood. Growing up in upstate New York, I often rode my 10-speed anywhere I had to go, or walked, and would arrive soaked. Occasionally my shoes would leak and my socks would be wet. But it was part of country life.

In my journal, I start each day with 5 things I am grateful for. As I wrote, I watched the squirrels hopping from tree to tree in the rain. The ducks were wading on the side of the swollen creek. And all the birds went about their day. Nature, it seems, was going with the flow. And so I did also! I painted, I cooked, I read. I went about my day choosing to do things that rainy days call for.

I have been seeing so many posts about changing my reaction to situations rather than expecting to act in a negative way. Today I was not conscious of the changes, but the day worked out ok! I also reminisced about running down the country road in the pouring rain. It was nice thinking about it. But today I stayed productive and dry. And kept busy with things that bring me joy.