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"Finish each day and be done with it. You have done what you could; some blunders and absurdities have crept in; forget them as soon as you can. Tomorrow is a new day; you shall begin it serenely and with too high a spirit to be encumbered with your old nonsense." ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson
A positive attitude may not solve all your problems, but it will annoy enough people to make it worth the effort. ~Herm Albright,
The only difference between a good day and a bad day is your attitude. ~Dennis S. Brown
Nothing contributes so much to tranquilize the mind as a steady purpose - a point on which the soul may fix its intellectual eye. ~Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley, Frankenstein, 1818
The test of a first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposed ideas in the mind at the same time, and still retain the ability to function. One should, for example, be able to see that things are hopeless and yet be determined to make them otherwise. ~F. Scott Fitzgerald
Life as it is, IMO, quite miserable/unfair/mundane.
I love folks who do/say/wear things out of the ordinary...and have odd or very open ideas, hobbies...anything to break up the norm.
But to spruce it up, by whatever means you choose, well go for it
Quote:
Originally Posted by Artistic Spirit
This is a monologue from one of my favorite movies. Peter O'Toole plays Miguel Cervantes (who wrote the classic book Don Quixote) in the musical, Man of La Mancha.
In this scene, Miguel Cervantes is in prison and asked by a cynic why he creates this madman idealistic character Don Quixote (who clearly lives in an unrealistic fantasy world) instead of facing "life as it is."
Miguel Cervantes replies with true emotional pain: "Life as it is. I have lived for over forty years and have seen life as it is. Pain. Misery. Cruelty beyond belief. I've heard all the voices from God's nobliest creatures. Moans from bundles of filth in the streets. I've been a soldier and a slave. I've seen my comrades fall in battle or die more slowly under the lash in Africa. These were men who saw life as it is. And they died despairing. No glory. No brave last words. And in their eyes, filled with confusion. Questioning 'why?' I do not think they were asking why they were dying---but why they have ever lived!
"And life itself seems lunatic---who knows where madness lies? Perhaps to be practical is madness. To surrender dreams, this may be madness. To seek treasure where there is only trash. Too much sanity can be madness! But maddest of all---is to see life as it is and not as it should be!"
I have been comforted many times by those of you on the mental health forum...sharing our stories is hard and most do not understand...
Thanks for the thread, Mistygirl
Quote:
Originally Posted by Artistic Spirit
Thank you, Misty Girl!
I do too. I think it's healthy to escape from the painful reality of life once and awhile. Read a book. Watch a favorite movie. Take a nap. Work on a creative project. I think "Art as Therapy" is interesting because you can express your true feelings and work on a creative project at the same time. Sometimes I'll work on my historical novel or make a comedy show with old film clips. I think painting sounds interesting too and would love to try that someday.
Another reason I like the Miguel Cervantes monologue is it acknowledges the reality of pain and suffering in life. I find it refreshing on this forum how candid people are expressing pain in their lives. I can relate to many of these situations myself. I think these feelings should be expressed! I honestly don't feel that anyone is "feeling sorry for themselves." Suffering hurts. Sometimes it hurts really bad. It's not always easy to find supportive, compassionate people during tough times. I've had to fight my own battles alone too. I'm glad to see a forum like this where people can reach out and help each other.
this is a great quote...going to write it down and place where I will view it daily
Quote:
Originally Posted by virgode
"Finish each day and be done with it. You have done what you could; some blunders and absurdities have crept in; forget them as soon as you can. Tomorrow is a new day; you shall begin it serenely and with too high a spirit to be encumbered with your old nonsense." ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson
I had a bit of cognitive therapy...to redirect your thinking away from negative/self-pity/unhappiness works but takes time to learn the skill...I don't always use this route but when I do = emotional relief!!!
Life as it is, IMO, quite miserable/unfair/mundane.
I love folks who do/say/wear things out of the ordinary...and have odd or very open ideas, hobbies...anything to break up the norm.
But to spruce it up, by whatever means you choose, well go for it
Thank you, Great Blue Heron!
I also enjoy people who do/say/wear things out of the ordinary. I think it takes a lot of courage to be a unique individual in our culture. Especially for someone like me who is an introvert and deeply sensitive. I'm not an extrovert, mainstream or need to be part of a group. I've been called "eccentric" but I actually take that as a compliment. The most interesting people I've enjoyed in life had a unique point of view about things and creative self expression. And some of the most open and honest deep conversations about life too!
I personally have no use for someone else's daily affirmations that pulled them through their life. I do however have favorite quotes about depression. Here's 3 from books.
Eat, Pray, Love:
"They flank me - Depression on my left, loneliness on my right. They don't need to show their badges. I know these guys very well.
...then they frisk me. They empty my pockets of any joy I had been carrying there. Depression even confiscates my identity;but he always does that."
The Bell Jar (and my favorite ever):
"Because wherever I sat—on the deck of a ship or at a street café in Paris or Bangkok—I would be sitting under the same glass bell jar, stewing in my own sour air."
Prozac Nation:
"That's the thing about depression: A human being can survive almost anything, as long as she sees the end in sight. But depression is so insidious, and it compounds daily, that it's impossible to ever see the end."
This one's for my anxiety (Sorry, I know it's off topic but hopefully it'll apply to someone).
“Therefore, do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”- Jesus
“Worry is spiritual short sight. Its cure is intelligent faith.”
“If we spend our time with regrets over yesterday, and worries over what might happen tomorrow, we have no today in which to live.”
“People get so in the habit of worry that if you save them from drowning and put them on a bank to dry in the sun with hot chocolate and muffins they wonder whether they are catching cold.”
"Worry never robs tomorrow of its sorrow, it only saps today of its joy."
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