“I am free to learn to dance in the rain”
What do you do when it rains?
Dancing in the Rain
a song by Kate Thomas
It’s not about waiting for the storm to pass
‘Cos it may rain and pour and then it’ll thunder some more
We’ll just have to learn to dance, have to learn to dance in the rain
“Life isn’t about waiting for the storm to pass, it’s about learning to dance in the rain.”
This seems so apt at the moment with the marvellous thunder and lightning storms and lashings of rain we have been having here in Sheffield.
What if we consider COVID and lockdown as a storm of sorts too.
I know some people are very affected by the weather and if it is raining it is, therefore, a ‘bad day’ and if it is sunny it is a ‘good day’. Not so. It is just the weather. It will pass over and change sooner or later. The weather doesn’t have to dictate your mood.
I have heard many many people say this, and it can be difficult to detach from this common narrative or belief. I sometimes feel disloyal by Not agreeing that rain = a bad day.
Somewhere along my path, I decided that rain is just rain and I need to dress appropriately and get on with my day and continue to notice the good things in my life and the world.
I am no PollyAnna. I am not glossing over the obvious tragedies of the COVID storm, our loss of freedoms to move as we would like or see who we would like. I don’t want to pretend to be happy and jolly if I’m feeling glum or sad. I don’t want to prevent myself from feeling joyful when I know others are suffering.
I want to allow my own weather system of emotions to come and go naturally, rising when the resources in life support and nourish me, and lower when I am not in touch with the life-supporting energy in all its many textures and flavours. When I need love and I get a hug, then I am happy. When I feel lonely and there is no company to be had, and no part of me can remember the many friends I have, then I feel sad. I have detached my emotions from the weather. I had plenty of good training when I lived in Manchester, but of course, it is not just the actual weather, it is the news and other life-events which can get us down too.
What if we can become more in charge of our mind and therefore our emotions? Would you like to know more about how to do this? Give me a call then, we can have a chat. I teach people how to do this.
Today I am grateful for having a great coat so I could dance in the rain in my yard, the rain was bouncing up off the ground! I was warm. I knew I could hop back in the house whenever I wanted to. My neighbours had their door open to enjoy the rain and then watched as I danced. My son took a photo! It was a few moments of real joy!
What do you do when it rains? Do you pre-decide it is going to be a bad day, or do you see what you can do with what you have got? Our attitude and decisions we make about the meaning of events can steer us in downward spirals. What if you could pre-decide to stay open, to notice the good, to point towards more ease and freedom and fun? (Spoiler alert – you can!)
I am a realist. I trust my chosen thoughts, I trust my emotions, I trust the sensations in my body, I trust life.
What if… next time it rains, you see this as a chance to go out and dance? In your bikini, in your birthday suit or wellies – it all counts. You are free to choose your behaviour. Photos, please!
“I am free to dance”
