Emotions are energy

it’s easy to miss the difference between emotions and the thoughts and stories which come with the emotions. But there’s power in feeling the difference.

This is especially true with really strong emotions that hit us when that “last straw” lands.

The real issue isn’t that last straw. It’s the whole pile of straw. But when we’re overwhelmed by emotion, all we can see is that last straw. The thing that just pushed us over the edge.

So the practice is learning to separate that last straw from what we’re feeling. To put all of our attention on feeling what we’re feeling, not the straw.

Because in that moment, what’s important isn’t what happened before. What’s important is what’s happening now: the emotions in the body. And taking care of ourselves and how we feel.

Being our own best friend as we feel filled with anger, fear, or sadness. Taking care of ourselves until the emotion moves through us, and the body calms down, as it always does. Eventually.

Than we can take a look at what happened. Not just that last straw, but the whole pile of straw. And how we might better clear the straw out in the future, before it gets to the last straw again.