Grievances and Glitter: a Beautiful Morning Restored

I was busying myself this morning, tidying up my bedroom, and thinking about the tasks ahead of me. I found my mind making up a scenario in which others were placing their desires upon me and controlling me around a specific issue I’m dealing with currently.

As my anger and resentment came to life in my mind, I absentmindedly stubbed my foot painfully on a piece of furniture. Often I notice that I suddenly become clumsy when my mind is preoccupied with a grievance of some kind, or when thinking about the past or future. In other words, when I am not focused on the present moment, or I am holding on to a judgment, I will suddenly become clumsy and hurt myself.

The anger got more intense as I wanted to blame myself for my lack of presence and for the scenario of victimhood that was playing in my mind. And dammit, my toe hurt!

Recognizing this familiar pattern of sliding into deeper resentment and rage, I told myself to relax and to snap out of it. I walked across the room and went to take a sip of my delicious gourmet cup of coffee. As I went to take a drink, I noticed a tiny piece of glitter that was floating in the top of my coffee. Somehow, it had landed there from a piece of pretty tissue paper that I had just touched nearby.

Still frustrated from stubbing my toe, I anxiously tried to fish the piece of glitter out of my coffee cup so I could take a sip. As I tried to fish it out, it disappeared under the surface, and I told myself that I could no longer drink the coffee because the glitter would hurt me. More frustration arose in me…

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How quickly had my beautiful morning been sabotaged by a grievance, the stubbing of my toe, then a tiny little piece of glitter in my otherwise perfect cup of coffee. How easily had my mood slid into anger and resentment that could easily multiply if I wasn’t careful to make a course correction. Hold on! 

Immediately, I was struck with the symbolism of the grievance that welled up in my mind and this tiny little piece of glitter in my coffee cup. I saw the connection between the grievance that hurt me, and a little piece of shiny glitter floating in an otherwise perfect cup of coffee. I had become upset and distracted by the story of victimhood in my mind, which ended up hurting my toe. I had also told myself that glitter was going to hurt me, so I had to fish out the glitter before I could drink my coffee. Whoa!

The more I take the glitter or my crazy thoughts seriously, both representing tiny little pieces of something that doesn’t belong there, the more angry and frustrated I would become.

I recognized that I was creating rules and regulations in my mind that were blocking me from enjoying my otherwise beautiful morning.

And if I didn’t stop this domino effect now, my day was going to be sabotaged by my own choice to see things, my thoughts in my mind and external events, as a problem.

That grievance in my mind, the fantasy of being taken advantage of by people in my life, started this whole series of events. All of this happened in a 60 second period of time. I realized that taking the unhappy thoughts in my mind seriously and reacting to them is what started this domino effect of unhappiness.

I saw that the little piece of glitter in my coffee is the same as the grievance that suddenly appeared in my mind. If I make it a problem by taking it seriously, and using all kinds of strain to fish it out, I will become unhappy and take it far more seriously than it calls for.

The sloth is right: it was time to chill 😎

Instead, I stopped trying to fish out the piece of glitter, and I took a nice wonderful sip of my coffee, believing instead that a tiny little piece of glitter was not going to hurt me. I also decided not to hold myself prisoner with a silly fantasy of being a victim.

I don’t have to take false thoughts in my mind so seriously, and I certainly don’t have to believe them and act on them. They don’t belong in my mind, just as that piece of glitter doesn’t belong in my coffee. But there’s no need for me to get upset when I see it’s there.

I can notice it, choose to overlook it, move on and enjoy the present moment and that heavenly cup of coffee.

I can choose to be peaceful, even when I am tempted to get angry at myself or others.

I have the power to choose in every moment what I believe to be true for me. Am I really a horrible person because this fantasy of victimhood arose in my mind? Is my coffee spoiled because of a tiny little piece of glitter? No!

Am I so fallible and powerless that a tiny little judgment in my mind, or a piece of glitter in my coffee, is going to hurt me? No. That is not the way I wish to view myself. I am bigger than these tiny little occurrences.

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By choosing to overlook what I thought was so wrong, peace and joy returned to my mind, and all was well again. The glitter is still in my coffee, and I’m sure more unpleasant thoughts will arise in my mind. And my toe is a little sore. But I choose to not make any of these things a problem. It’s OK, and I am free again to enjoy the next perfectly imperfect moment.

I am grateful for the presence of mind today to restore joy and happiness to myself from the simple choice to let go of what I thought was such a big deal.😌🙏🏼✨🎉