Okay, I am coping.  Some movement I attribute to working these items below.
Like exercise, you have to force it then it feels good.
(Okay, me and exercise, in theory only.)
Maybe some is the answer to prayers, a shift in consciousness.
Perhaps some is the collective sighing a sigh of relief.

Gratitude.

Mind you, I didn’t want to do it, and now am sorry I stopped,
as I used to write gratitude daily and it works.  I am forcing myself to do this again.
I do have many things for which I am grateful.
My husband — and that I am not walking through this alone,
which many people are, and that would be lonely and frightening.
My cats, who make me laugh with their antics.  Never a dull moment.
A job.  I may sometimes hate it but I am grateful for it.
My Buddhist practice… Having a spiritual practice supports me in so many ways.

Sometimes, I simply do “it” for the ones I love.

Whatever “it” is, like keeping a good frame of mind in the studio to help bolster Mitchell.
If I am drowning then of course I tell him, but keeping things positive for him is a way to keep things positive for me.  This also applies to cooking good meals,
and saying thank you when he brings me coffee in the mornings.

Celebrating memories.

In past, I have not paid attention to Facebook offering up memories, but these days I am looking at the memories as many are positive.  It reminded me that I have to take the time to remember good times, silly stuff, and crate celebration.  Luckily, all I have to do is look up on my wall.  Mitchell and friends send me things, and these cheer me.

Friends.

I shared my struggles on Facebook and here and have many public and private responses… knowing that others are struggling is comforting, even if I wish they were not.
My blogging buddies are the best, and art buddies.
I have a few friends from high school days, and that is nice too.

Ritual.

I’ve been creating ritual for so long I forget to talk about it…
but it is so important to our lives.
I work with the phases of the moon, building and releasing — as I publish this we are going into the Dark of the Moon, a releasing period.
And there are daily rituals around the cats, our work days, and divination.

Is this something you all might be interested in?

Forcing myself to sketch.  Anything.

Hardest one yet, but doing this over the weekend when I didn’t want sketch, it helped.
And shockingly, I am pleased with what I posted this week, a pleasant surprise!

What works for you?

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