This past year has been tough – mourning the loss of loved ones and anticipating more loss.
To manage my stress, I tried compartmentalizing my worries. Everything went in its own little box, safely stored until I was ready to deal with it.
That worked until the boxes started to leak – they weren’t strong enough to contain my fears.
After a bit of struggling, I brought humor into the mix. Rather than boxes, I started putting everything into carp. Yes, carp.
Humor strengthened my containers and so far it’s working out well. The image alone, makes me laugh which has the added benefit of relieving stress.
Following are my top three comcarpments.
1. My dad’s in the final stages of Alzheimer’s. He’s there at the front of the carp and I can look at him anytime.
When my dad was younger, he didn’t take carp from anyone
2. My mom also has health issues and recently moved into assisted living. She has to sell her home, which compounds her situation. As a result, she blends in more with her carp, making her a little harder to see.
My mom used to love fishing for compliments
3. A woman who’s close to me found a lump in her breast. Thankfully she’s okay. Before we knew the outcome of her tests, I only put her boob in a carp. I wanted to keep the rest of her accessible.
Cod, I’m glad she’s okay
As I need to address each of these situations, I open the carp’s mouth to deal with what’s inside. Humor hasn’t fixed my problems but it’s helped.
As they say: Carpe Carp Diem – seize the carp of the day!
May the farce be with you!
Your IFF,
Pam