Daily writing prompt
What are you most worried about for the future?
I'm a mom. I live in the United States. I worry about things that moms who live in the United States worry about. We're all plugged into a perpetual worry machine that extracts money from our fear about the future.
Too intense a statement? 🙂
I remember taking some kind of intro writing class where we had to analyze an advertisement. I chose a life insurance ad with a photo of a child in a car seat and well-placed trigger words about safety and being a responsible parent. Though I was not yet a mom, the ad made me feel like I was being irresponsible not having life insurance for this child in the ad.
So there's the normal kind of worry, but then there's the manipulated worry I do my best to see through and breathe through, put into perspective. I do a fairly good job of that I think, most days, unless exhausted in some way. If exhausted I'm susceptible to the worry version of the Sneaky Hate Spiral (and oh god, if you've never seen this, you need to click).
Therapy helps.
There's also a quote attributed to the Dalai Lama that I mantra to myself sometimes, when I feel anxiety coming on (though it's not quite as long in my head):
"If a problem is fixable, if a situation is such that you
can do something about it,
then there is no need to worry.
If it's not fixable,
then there is no help in worrying.
There is no benefit in worrying whatsoever."
Mantras bring to mind malas and rosary beads, and although it's been a long time since I used my mala as intended, I do carry it around occasionally, which has a calming effect. I also have a wood bead bracelet that acts as the same.
Worry Beads (from the article below)
Greek Komboloi are what's traditionally thought of as worry beads:
Yet, the history of the komboloi and its origins date back to time immemorial, when monks on Mount Athos began making strands of beads by tying knots on a string at regular intervals in order to say their prayers to God.
However, in modern times, worry beads are often not designed for religious or ceremonial purposes but rather for fun and relaxation.
Whether on the street, on an airplane, or in a busy kafeneion downtown, you will find people playing with their worry beads in different manners, even doing flips and tricks with them, letting go of their stress and worries as one bead moves deliberately towards the other.
-The History and How to of Komboloi, or "Greek Worry Beads"
❤
Oyoyo Oyoyoyo Oyoyoyayoyoyoyo 🎶
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