September 2019 Link Party with “A Chronic Voice”

It’s time for my replies to Sheryl’s prompts for September’s Link Party. Thank you, Sheryl, for coming up with great prompts every month.

This month’s prompts are Finding, Researching, Dating, Reusing, and Recounting.

Finding

This month I have been on a futile search for energy. I’m not sleeping well due to annoying dreams. My anxiety is high due to my dad having surgery last month and my dog getting pancreatitis. I think my dog is back to normal, but she badly needs a dental cleaning/checkup. Its scheduled for the second week in October. My dad is still in recuperation mode, and is struggling quite a bit.

The need for energy has led to some major cravings for Not My Food stuff. However, eating the wrong food only makes me feel more tired. Ugh!

Researching

September has also been full of researching info related to my website, and computers. I’ve been having computer tech issues all month, and I feel like a hamster on an exercise wheel. I go around and around, but nothing gets solved, or I fix one issue and another one pops up. I think these things are also sucking my energy away.

Reusing

When I’m having higher energy days, I do put used paper, into my recycle bin. For jars or plastic containers, I let them sit in my sink soaking while I wash the other dishes. If a container is too difficult to clean, I pitch it. I figure any little bit of recycling that I do is better than no recycling.

Be careful, though, with containers. I sliced my finger on a sharp edge the other day.

I also like to use recycled materials in collages and artwork. See examples on my Instagram account: upbeat_living_blog

Recounting

I’ve recently learned that sometimes I need to look at difficult experiences with a fresh perspective. For example, when I think back to single parenting 6 children, I tend to remember all the things, I didn’t do right. I tend to focus on all the mistakes I made. However, as I look at that time period trying to find the things that went well, new revelations surface.

I’ve come to realize that I was a capable mom, who with God’s help somehow raised 6 children into competent adults. I set rules, and consequences and no matter how hard it was, I stuck by them when the rules were broken. I didn’t tune out from my kids with alcohol or drugs. I loved them, and was as involved as I could be with their activities.

Also, I worked 40 hour weeks as a registered nurse, and did my nursing job well, while raising them.

Maybe you have a difficult season where all you’ve been able to see is what went wrong or your failures. If you look for what went right, you might be surprised by what you find out about yourself.

Wrap-Up

I’m getting this written three days before the end of the month. I’m still looking for more energy, and I probably will be for the rest of my days. It is what it is.

You can read other responses to these prompts here. https://www.achronicvoice.com/2019/08/25/september-2019-linkup/

If you missed last month’s link party responses you can read them here. https://upbeatliving.net/august-2019-link-party-with-a-chronic-voice/

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Till next time, Kathy