Something happened at our house last night. 

 

It was 7 pm.  Time for the evening ‘running of the hounds’.

I got up from my seat on the living room couch and happenend to look out the window.

It took me a couple of seconds to make sense of what I was seeing.

And then…it hit me.

 

 

Before I go on, I have to tell you about the absolutely marvelous job that my husband Brent has done all summer taking care of our backyard pool.

It’s been an unusual year in that there were several things that required attention.  The sand in the filter had to be replaced and this was a learning curve, but he figured it out.  With the extreme heat in July, some algae blooms appeared and he was able to clear them up.  The heater had an issue, the backwash hose broke, and on it went.  But Brent figured out how to fix each issue and now the pool is crystal clear, the temperature is just right.  It’s heaven.

So, yesterday we were sitting outside on the deck and Brent noticed that the water level in the pool was a little low.  He turned on the hose and we went inside to prepare dinner.

I’m betting you can guess what happened next.

I stood up from the couch, looked outside and all I could see was water cascading out of the pool with force.

As you can imagine, there was much scurrying to get outside.  Brent may have uttered a few choice curse words.  But the good news is…he was able to get it under control.  Everything was okay.  

When I returned from the running of the hounds, it was pretty clear what was going on.  I could see by the look on Brent’s face that he was mentally kicking his own ass.  He was feeling bad, he was feeling mad that he ‘screwed up’, and calling himself all kinds of names in his head.

I gently reminded him that it was no big deal.  There was no damage.  Our ground out here is sandy and dry so it probably really enjoyed the drink.  There was no harm done at all.

But despite my best efforts, he ended up having a restless night, tossing and turning and thinking about it.

For those of you who don’t know, my husband Brent is THE BEST Morning Man in Radio.  He does an awesome morning show on Newstalk 650 CKOM, and this morning he shared the story with his listeners.

To my delight, his listeners and his colleagues shared similar stories and I think this really helped him to feel better about the whole thing.  To read these great stories, check out The Brent Loucks Show page on Facebook.  

And it got me to thinking that this would be a terrific opportunity to share my thoughts with you.

Our brains are pretty amazing.  But right now, they are all working overtime trying to sort out and make sense of everything that is going on in this crazy COVID time.  Our brains are under an immense amount of pressure right now.

Stress is everywhere.  How do we keep safe?  Should kids return to school?  Mask or no mask?  Work from home or go back to the office?  Unfortunately this is all so new and there are no clear right answers.

Our brains are doing the best they can.  Under these circumstances, we are going to be distracted, forgetful, & confused.  We’re going to find it difficult to concentrate, we’re going to be mentally fatigued.

It’s not that we’re getting old, or that we’re stupid or a dumb ass.  It’s because our beautiful brains are working harder than ever.  Something’s gotta give.

So my friends, please, please, please do not be hard on yourself if you find that you’re forgetting things, if you make mistakes, if you get distracted, if you can’t focus or if you feel so tired in your head that you just want to shut the world off.

Please, please, please pay attention to what you’re saying to yourself mentally and out loud.  Being negative, nasty or down on yourself is NOT going to reduce your stress.  It is NOT going to make you feel better.  I guarantee it.

What will make you feel better, and what will help you to feel less stressed is kindness.
Kindness to yourself and to others.

Think of it this way.  If you screw up…as long as no one dies…it’s okay.  In the grand scheme of things, it really doesn’t matter if you left the hose on, or locked yourself out of the house, or made a mistake at work or whatever.

There is no need to feel bad, ashamed, embarrased or to kick your own ass mentally. 
Give yourself a break and celebrate.

 

                Congratulations…you’re human!  🙂

 

 

 

 If you screw up…admit it.  If you need to apologize…do it (right away).  If everything blows up in your face…you’ll learn something from it.  It’s all good.  

And as Brent experienced…share your story with others.  You’ll see that you’re not the only one!  
That it happens to us all.  Maybe we can even laugh at ourselves.  

Life’s too short to be stressed or unhappy.  And we sure as heck don’t need any more stress right now, do we?  

Speaking of STRESS…stay tuned.  I’m working on a brand new mini online workshop that will be offered Free of Charge!!!  There’s some good news, right?  I’ll keep you updated.  

In the meantime, be kind to yourself and to others.  

Cheers,
Penney