Bedraggled

 

Bedraggled

Dishevelled, disordered, untidy, unkempt, troubled, disarranged – that is what Google’s dictionary offers for my title word. Looking at my sunflowers perhaps just plain ‘droopy’ says it all!  And it’s not just the sunflowers. That’s how I have been feeling lately.

I don’t want to complain. I love the English summer. Basking in the sunlight with my favourite book or perhaps the writing pen, was my winter vision for this summer. But oh, the heat! Disturbing, exhausting, tiresome. My summer break has been extended. I’ve given myself time off from writing and the accompanying social media paraphernalia. YouTube can wait, as can Instagram, FB, and Tik-Tok.

I was exhausting myself trying to keep up. FOMO. Then I injured my back. It was a blessing in disguise. I’ve had to slow down and simplify. Slow down because any activity caused me great pain. I no longer had to feel guilty if I just sat down and read my book. The NHS website didn’t help as it advocated movement for lower back pain. Luckily, I went with my gut instinct and recommended rest instead of activity for myself. No doctor’s appointments were available to confirm my self-diagnosis.

Simplify. Yes, if you can’t do much, it becomes do only the essentials. So, a bit of washing where the machine did the work, was a good idea. Visiting was curtailed to fun family and certainly no duty calls were allowed.

What was once a joy can become a millstone, if you let it. What words can I offer to help us get through this climatic crisis?

Start a new writing project or revise an old one – anything to break out of lethargy. Working on a novel or full-length non-fiction book, in this heat, is draining. Take time off to write a short story or poem. Enjoy the break rather than be driven by a guilt-ridden anxiety by what you are not writing. Cherish the extra family time. Do something with the children or grandchildren during the school holidays. I’ve cheered myself up already.

I’ve been reading “Midnight Library” (book club choice) by Matt Haigh. Nora Seed tries alternative lives as she hovers between life and death after a suicide attempt. Although clearly not a Christian book, it offers some points for us all to consider. We all make wrong choices which affect our lives but instead of wallowing in regret, get on with the life you’ve got. Your attitude to the hand you’ve been dealt is the deciding factor in your happiness.

 So, an opportunity this dreadful heat affords us, is to sit back, sip the cocktails and re-evaluate. Take time to think through what matters to you. Look again at the words of Isaiah,

“But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint. Isaiah 40:31 (KJV)”

 Thank you for taking the time to read this.