Momentary Chaos of Life

Speaking to people over the past few days, it seems as though many people are experiencing emotional challenges at the moment in their lives.

Maybe it’s a February purge of things we’ve been carrying over the new year transition period, or maybe it’s something astronomical; we are currently under a full moon, after all.

I read a poem yesterday and it seems very fitting:

The Guest House by Jalaluddin Rumi

This being human is a guest house. Every morning a new arrival.

A joy, a depression, a meanness, some momentary awareness comes as an unexpected visitor.

Welcome and entertain them all! Even if they’re a crowd of sorrows, who violently sweep your house empty of its furniture, still, treat each guest honourably. He may be clearing you out for some new delight.

The dark thought, the shame, the malice, meet them at the door laughing, and invite them in.

Be grateful for whoever comes, because each has been sent as a guide from beyond.

Even when things seem to feel a little chaotic, perhaps we need to simply be with how we are, just as strangers are welcomed into a guesthouse for the night. Maybe the feeling might be presenting itself for a reason, and rather than pushing them away, we just sit with them for a moment, acknowledging their presence, and if it feels comfortable, resting with what those feelings are telling us.

This week is children’s mental health week, which is an important matter to me. I feel strongly that we need to be aware of young people’s emotional wellbeing. Children have mental health as well as physical health, just as we adults do. We need to be able to share our feelings to model that behaviour to our younger loved ones.

We need to show that all feelings are OK to have, and how we might be able to explore and deal with them. One way to work with children might be to give them space to draw how they are feeling. We could also make time to share our day or week to show that talking is OK and normalise difficult emotions.

If you’re finding things challenging at the moment, perhaps take stock of how things are around you, see what things you do that you could let go of or put on pause for now, and allow yourself to simply be.

Even if it’s for a moment to be with feelings, or to have contact with someone.

Your future self will thank you for it.