Tuesday, July 8, 2008

Stressed? Me Too!

I'm stressed out this week.

No need to go into details, we've all been where I am at one point or another, right? Too much to do, too little time, not enough money. Too much noise and congestion. Feeling stifled and countered at every turn with no place to rest. And damn! It's hot, too!

Struggle, struggle, struggle, blah, blah, blah.

I'm done with whining, though, because I don't like myself when I'm down and crotchety.

So I've decided to just STOP, and seek solace within. I've "checked out" this week, spending much more time in quiet contemplation, reading and breathing deeply. I find that when I'm stressed, flipping through the Tao Te Ching always — always — seems to help.

Seek knowledge daily and increase,
Seek the Tao, and diminish
Lose, lose again
Until you are emptied.

There, that's better, isn't it?

My busy work this week: drinking green tea, listening to lots of Vivaldi, folding paper cranes. Maybe even a little tai chi. This month's issue of Ode Magazine is "The Silence Issue." Recommended reading for anyone feeling the press of modern life, as I am this week.

I still did my pushups and crunches this morning, though. It would have felt weird if I'd skipped them.

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