Moods are fascinating. I had one overtake me last night and, unlike most moods, I can tell you precisely when and where, though the why is a bit more murky.
What interests me most, though, is how thoroughly this mood overtook the cheerful mood I felt through most of my day, like a quickly spreading poison or clouds riding a strong wind. I was one moment in bright, warm sunshine and the next in gathering, threatening gloom.
And this is the nature of moods, isn't it, mercurial, ephemeral, subject to the whims of mind and conspiracy of events? We are no more master of them than of the rotation of the earth.
When we cling to them, though, that is when our moods become Who We Are rather than a passing storm. We know, with a certainty that has no basis in fact, that these feelings must be true and given their rein, that to ignore them is to repress something dangerous, the beast in a cage that becomes more vicious the longer it is captive.
But this is not so. Moods no more define us than warts or blemishes define our faces. They are passing phenomenon. It is only in giving them dominance and supremacy that we give them strength, invite them to settle in for a nice, long stay. Yes, as Rumi wisely counsels us, it is needful to invite them in and treat them with honor and care. But our open door policy works both ways; we leave it ajar so they can enter freely, but also so they can leave when they realize this heart is our home and not theirs.
What interests me most, though, is how thoroughly this mood overtook the cheerful mood I felt through most of my day, like a quickly spreading poison or clouds riding a strong wind. I was one moment in bright, warm sunshine and the next in gathering, threatening gloom.
And this is the nature of moods, isn't it, mercurial, ephemeral, subject to the whims of mind and conspiracy of events? We are no more master of them than of the rotation of the earth.
When we cling to them, though, that is when our moods become Who We Are rather than a passing storm. We know, with a certainty that has no basis in fact, that these feelings must be true and given their rein, that to ignore them is to repress something dangerous, the beast in a cage that becomes more vicious the longer it is captive.
But this is not so. Moods no more define us than warts or blemishes define our faces. They are passing phenomenon. It is only in giving them dominance and supremacy that we give them strength, invite them to settle in for a nice, long stay. Yes, as Rumi wisely counsels us, it is needful to invite them in and treat them with honor and care. But our open door policy works both ways; we leave it ajar so they can enter freely, but also so they can leave when they realize this heart is our home and not theirs.
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