The best medicine

humor, as the saying goes.

I think I'm on the edge of getting sick, but I'll be a hog's belly before I just let that happen. People try all sorts of potions and remedies to avoid and return from being sick, but really I think the most effective things are the simplest. But not the easiest. Getting enough rest, for example. Simple, but much harder than popping some pills.

Being happy. Simple. But not something you can force. It's a subtle game, to both respect and honor whatever feelings you have, and at the same time, relentlessly shift your focus back to gratitude, hope, love. If you don't properly honor your present moment internal state, you get repression, which is super unhealthy, and unpleasant. If you don't consciously choose to focus on gratitude and such things, you can get stuck in a dark bog of negativity, where the negative thoughts feed on and echo themselves in a negative spiral.

I'm still figuring out the balance for myself. But as with all things, as I consciously work on it, I'm getting better. Better at genuine positivity in my life, no matter the situation.

There's a saying, I think it's from an ancient Greek philosopher, "nothing is good or bad, but thinking makes it so." Perhaps you have qualms with that, but it would certainly lead to an interesting discussion, no matter where you fall on the matter.

I don't think it's as simple as deciding to be happy, since we're dealing with our subconscious and emotional minds as well, that don't just obey our every command. But I do think our beliefs and paradigms and interpretations are what shape our experience of life.

So I'm working on consciously shaping mine. It's slow going, but so are most of the amazing things I've done or had done to me in my life so far.

I know something must be up with my body, because I'm planning to go to bed as soon as I possibly can, and rather than dreading laying in bed with my mind whirring and nothing to do, I am euphoric at the idea. I think I could go to sleep right now, and it's 7:30. I feel so grateful for sleep. Thank you for rest, for peace, for health and strength, and for a biologically enforced break.

Good night and good week, all. Stay healthy, if you can.
^_^
-Isaac

And here's some "medicine":