In the words of Jimmy Buffet, “I’d like to be a jellyfish cause jellyfish don’t pay rent. They don’t walk and they don’t talk with some euro-trash accent. They’re just simple protoplasms, clear as cellophane. They ride the winds of fortune, life without a brain.” One of his more underrated songs, “Mental Floss” sends forth a strong message beneath a silly exterior. I think about this song a lot. We often get in our own ways creating unnecessary stress and mental exhaustion. We put too much on our plates and then we beat ourselves up when we don’t perform at our best because we’re spreading ourselves too thin. We freak out over things that are out of our control. Don’t you find yourself wanting to just take a vacation from your brain for a while? Well, let me ask you this...
When was the last time you read a book? When was the last time you took up a new hobby? When was the last time you cracked open a cookbook and cooked a brand new recipe for the first time?
While many of you may say, “Jeremy, I don’t have time to do any of those things. My life is way too busy for any of that!!” While I’m sure that’s true, let me ask you one more question. How is your mental health doing these days?
We’re living through unprecedented times. 2020 has given us just about everything but clear vision. What it has done, though, is create an enormous challenge to adapt our lives, routines, and outlook on life. Things seem shaky. The ground beneath us does not seem quite as solid as it once did. What if I were to challenge you to consider the possibility that our own worst enemy may be ourselves. As FDR once famously said, “The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.” Imagine a world where we turn off our TVs. We turn off our computers. We turn off our cellphones. We then dust off an old book and start reading the first chapter. We open the garage, pull out our lawnmower and mow the lawn that’s been needing to be cut for a little over a week. We surprise our husband, wife, girlfriend, or boyfriend with a beautiful gourmet dinner that we cooked all by ourself.
UNPLUG from the FEAR and have FAITH. The world has enough scared, paranoid skeptics. What this world needs a lot more of is strong, courageous, faithful, loving hearts. With this upcoming election it has a lot of us feeling riled up and worried that the sky will fall if the candidate on the other side wins. If there’s anything I’ve learned so far in my first 30 years of life it’s that the sun will always rise in the morning and set in the evening. If you don’t like the election results and it upsets you enough, then go get involved in your local politics and do something about it. Otherwise, spend more time caring for yourself and your mental fortitude. Strengthen your mind and your soul and the world around you will start to change. Stop putting your reality in the hands of others and start believing in the fact that you create your own reality. And trust me, I’m talking just as much to myself as I am to you right now!
As we venture into the last few months of 2020, relish the Holidays. Spend a little extra time hugging your loved ones and please, please, please spend a little extra time loving yourself. Don’t be afraid. Don’t have envy. Don’t have anger. Be full of joy. You’ll be happier and so will the world around you. Now crack open that new book you haven’t gotten around to reading yet or if you’re like me crack open that bottle of whiskey you haven’t gotten around to drinking yet. Cheers! ; )