I Can See Clearly Now, The Rain is Gone...Thank You!

I'm back :)
Thank you so much to all of you who stopped by my last, very depressing post, and privately in Discord, to offer up a great many kind words, support, love, prayers, advice etc. Although I walked away from steemit, only for the week because I needed a break, I continually came back to read and re-read all of your lovely comments, and they truly helped me. I was in a real funk about a few things, and I guess just needed some time away, but figuratively and literally, the clouds have parted, the sun is shining, and I'm feeling happy and optimistic again.

I spent a lot of time in this pool over the last week, swimming lap after lap, not only to keep this semi-middle-aged-girlish figure taut :), but also because it's just so good for my head. There's something about water that is truly purifying, and little by little, I sloughed the negativity from my skin and my mind, and stepped out healthier and more true to me and who I really am, every single day.

We had several very hard days of rain, off and on; you can see it coming down on the left side of this photo. The new palapa roof kept everything dry, but the water you see in the middle of the patio was simply run-off, because it was coming down so fast and heavy.

That's how I felt too; bad news after bad news, fast and furious; The skies mimicked my mood; dark, depressing, ominous. It wasn't anything in particular that sent me spiraling, but more of a culmination of everything, but all of the comments I received on that post reaffirmed for me that I've got plenty on my plate and actually deserve some time for me, because really, I'm of no use to anyone if I am compromised myself. I needed to become whole again.

It took a few days of doing nothing but what I wanted to do; I did a lot of swimming, reading books (imagine! :), cooking (which I find so therapeutic), gardening, hanging out with Brian, and watching my big cat Buddy, and my new kitten Wolfie, finding their way around each other. Like most things in life, it took a little love, patience, and time, but it all worked out in the end.

I also spent time laughing, and at first it's difficult to do, especially if and when you stop laughing for any length of time, but my sons sent me these three memes, and they kick-started the whole hilarious ball rolling :)