It’s probably no surprise for those who know me. I’m an animated, demonstrative kinda gal.
Put me in a high pressure situation like public speaking or meeting a sponsored post deadline while the twinions are sick and the nervous energy is palpable.
Years ago, in the bland, dull world that be corporate, while attending a training course, the entire team had to individually stand up the front and read excerpts from the great late Martin Luther King Jr’s historical speech, “I Have A Dream”
The purpose of the exercise was to hone our public speaking skills: to annunciate properly; speak with conviction; ‘feel’ the words we were reading aloud.
Well, Ms Highly Emotional couldn’t get passed “I have a dream…”
I started thinking how the speech was still so relevant today; that decades after this speech was first delivered, society was still battling with racial and gender equality.
My voice started to quiver, tears welling up.
Unable to finish, I walked back to my seat deeply embarrassed.
Laughing off the light-hearted teasing from my colleagues, there was some serious turmoil going on within.
“Why can’t I keep my shit together???
How much of a relief if someone just came up and asked if I was okay, try and see if there was something else going on because years later as I found out, there were tons of unresolved issues brewing internally.
During a counselling session last year, Penny my lovely psychologist suggested that perhaps, I was the kind of person that felt everything – pain, excitement, joy, stress, love – to the point I’d get flustered, overwhelmed. Confused, even.
“Aaaand, that’s a bad thing, right ???” I asked cautiously.
“No, not at all. It’s about being aware of it. Be mindful that that’s what’s happening. But also accept that this is who you are…”
Damn Penny for making it sound so easy.
She’s obviously good at what she does. Lucky for me.
Yesterday was RU OK Day, a mental health initiative where we ask those around us if they’re okay.
Because you just never know how much you can help someone in lightening an emotional load.
Even if you missed out on asking someone yesterday, it’s not too late to ask someone today or any other day.
Four simple yet powerful letters that can mean the world to your beloved or a random stranger: RU OK?
1. Follow With Some Grace.
2. Sign up to the awesome Digital Parents community ( if you haven’t already done so). DP was created by Brenda Gaddi who happens to be the creator of FYBF. She’s also created 4 gorgeous kidlets. In case you’d like to know. Or maybe not. But we’ll share that info just the same.
3. Add your post URL to the FYBF linky. Please only link up one post.
4. Grab the funky FYBF button and post it on your sidebar. Help spread the blogfloggin love.
5. Visit the blogs of your fellow FYBF’ers and share the comment love