When things fall apart or go awry, let the air out of your “GAS” tank. 

Like most of us, I struggle with this.  OMG, What will I do? How can this be? What will happen to me?  I get into panic mode and that just doesn’t serve me.  I know it. But I still do it.  There are years of reinforced  streams of thought that run through my head that I must undo.  In many cases, I don’t know where the threads begin and all that unraveling, like undoing a skein of yarn that the cat turned into its personal toy, takes patience -- And kindness.

We get caught up in the daily minutia of our lives.  We stress when things don’t appear to be going our way.   It is often a challenge to remember to be grateful.

So, how do I deal with those days when nothing goes my way (my way, as I see it, my personal hubris)? I seem to deal differently with different situations, on different days, and based on whether my Give a S(hoot) tank is full or not.  The funny thing is, I deal much better when it is low.  So, I think that the challenges are presented to me to help drain that GAS tank. 

Now, I don’t mean that I want to live like I don’t give a hoot because that is not me.  I have a strong care factor for my fellow human and my planet, but sometimes I find that I am giving a hoot about the WRONG stuff, the WRONG people.  (Oh, and guess what else I do.  You won’t believe this!   I sometimes don’t allow things to unfold, or let others do what THEY need to do.  I try to control things!  Can you imagine?)  But, when the tank is low, I see more clearly.  When it is too full, my vision is clouded and my trust is gone.

God is very clever.  If I don’t drain the tank myself, He WILL see to it that it gets drained.  And that’s what’s been going on of late.  God’s been draining my GAS tank.  For now, I am seeing what’s important. I am seeing what matters most.  The rest has just escaped into thin air and has dissolved and now I give a hoot about the right stuff.  It feels so much better.

My day to day worries? Oh, they’re still there, but they will have to wait.  For now, the bills I must pay today are paid.  I still need to get stamps, but they are written – and no, I don’t do the online stuff – writing out the checks and going through all the motions of sealing the envelopes, putting on the stamps and putting them either in my mailbox and setting the flag for the postman, or taking them to the post office myself is all an act that sends a strong message to the Universe that I am successful, capable and am taken care of.  It feels like a more substantial way to say “I trust”.  Pushing a “pay now” button on the computer does not have the same reward for me.  But this is me.  I understand that part of me and I honor it.  Tomorrow is another day and I will deal with those things that do not belong in my today then. 

Right now my GAS tank is perfectly low.

        Since I started delving into the Law of Attraction and The Secret several years ago, I am noticing that I draw like-minded people to me everyday.  It’s funny.  People will surprise you.  You’ll be talking with someone you’ve known a long time and suddenly, out of the blue, they’ll say something that alerts you to the fact that “they’re one of us” as a new, dear friend of mine likes to say.  Or, they tweet something that resonates with you and you realize, “Huh! There’s another one!”  Just more proof to me that we draw the people into our lives that we’re supposed to.  

         As I sit here pondering why we sometimes don’t immediately recognize these people, I wonder if it’s a closet religion or something.  “Yeah, we’re believers in this crazy idea that you manifest your destiny by your thoughts, but don’t tell anybody – don’t want to be judged by the non-believers.”  Or, maybe, it’s just that you don’t believe it strongly enough and you’re keeping your options open by not committing to it outloud.  I imagine there are some that jump right in putting the Law into practice, while some of us have to take little baby steps, but that’s what life is, really, little baby steps.  Why rush to the end? Why not enjoy the journey?

         I was somehow directed to an article today about living a balanced life and thought about putting the link onto Twitter and Facebook, but I then decided, “No. I want to write what I think!” (Oh my, am I committing this outloud?)  My journey is one of three steps forward and one step back most of the time as I take on the challenge of releasing my inner demons, those hated “shoulds”, and the harsh words of others that stuck years ago – you know the ones, those words that love to flit through your head the minute something bad or embarrassing happens to you.  I do believe in the power of positive thoughts and I like to wax philosophical sometimes and look at the bigger picture, especially when I see friends and family struggling with the mundane, day to day stuff that could crush a soul if allowed.  So, I’m gonna wax a bit.

         We are all going through tough times worldwide.  Some have challenges and hurdles greater than others, but all in all, we’re in this together and each of us is exactly where we are supposed to be.  Is the Universe trying to reach us? Are we not hearing?  Do we HAVE to beat the rat in this race? Or, can we look at these happenings as a message to slow down and find our own peace and balance?  I looked at the word Balance as an acronym and came up with this:

Be present

Act as if

Live with zeal

Assume responsibility

No can be a positive word

Choose wisely

Enjoy every day

       Practice, practice, practice. And, more importantly -- Be gentle with yourself.

1.  Commune with Nature at Kings Landing Park

2.  Shop Farmers Markets for Local Produce and Handmade Goods

3.  Stroll the boardwalks at Chesapeake Beach, North Beach, Solomons or Battle Creek Cypress Swamp

4.  Learn about life in the Bay at the Chesapeake Biological  Laboratory in Solomons

5.  Picnic on the water's edge

6.  Trace the history of railroads at the Chesapeake Beach Railway Museum

7.  Hunt for fossils along the Chesapeake Bay

8.  Visit a one-room schoolhouse

9.  Paddle the Chesapeake Bay or the Patuxent River

10.  Study over 100 species of birds in their natural habitat

11.  Visit the Arthur Storer Planetarium

12.  Tour a historic church

13.  Watch sailboat races from the Solomons Riverwalk on Thursday nights throughout the summer

14.  Spend an afternoon fishing or crabbing

15.  Explore the sites on the Star-Spangled Banner Trail

16.  Hike 15 miles of trails at American Chestnut Land Trust

17.  Trace early history at the the Jefferson Patterson Park & Museum, an archaeological and environmental preserve

18.  Wander through antique shops and unique boutiques

19.  Experience the outdoors at our many parks and recreation areas

20.  Bike along rolling hills or one of many paved paths

I love this time of year in the Mid-Atlantic Region because it means the return of many migratory birds. Flowers are beginning to bloom and very soon, if you wear something red, a hummingbird may just fly up and look right at you for a brief second.  They zip in quick and will stop only briefly to see if you contain nectar.  I have a wonderful red canvas “sky chair” that hangs on my porch.  They buzz me often.  That’s when I remember to get out my hummingbird feeder.  It seems hummingbirds often return to where they knew there was a reliable source of nectar last year.

Hummingbirds love red – we’ve all heard that for years – because their favorite food is produced by red flowers and they need a lot of that energizing sugar water.  Interestingly, they catch tiny spiders to feed their young, but the adults need the sugar water for themselves.

A hummingbird feeder is very inexpensive and a great way to be entertained during the summer days.  The nectar can be ready to mix, ready to pour, or home made.  If you make your own you do not need to add the food coloring that comes in the commercial packages.  The red on the feeder is sufficient to bring them in.  The home made recipe is 4 parts water to 1 part sugar.  Boil the water, add the sugar, letting it completely dissolve.  Only fill the feeder part way to start with because the nectar ferments quickly and can cause harm to the hummingbirds.  I only fill mine all the way if I know I have a lot of birds feeding.  You should change the solution every 2-3 days depending on how much exposure to the sun your feeder gets.  Many of the male hummingbirds are very territorial and won’t let another bird feed from his feeder.  You can put out several small feeders in a row or scattered around the yard to offer more food to more birds, although I HAVE seen birds sharing a feeder in the past.

To keep ants and bees off the feeder, you may want to invest in an ant trap (which is a cup device from which you hang the feeder and fill with water – ants won’t cross the water).  Bees can be a bit more of a challenge, but some feeders come with bee guards.  The best bee proof feeders have a reservoir where the hummingbird has to insert its beak.  Bees can’t get to that nectar, but they can to dripping nectar.  For more information, go to your local garden or wild bird store and get their advice.  Hang your feeders and be ready to wind down.  It’ll take your mind off all your problems for a few moments – or longer if you’ll let it.